BS 

1140 

.B69 

1911 


V 


BS  1140  .B69  1911 
Box,  George  Herbert,  1869- 
^  1933. 

A  short  introduction  to  the 
h  literature  of  the  Old 


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t 


VJI  XX  X  X  I 


XVX*  I 


lohn’s  College,  and  Lecturer  in  Theology 
at  St.  John’s  and  Oriel  Colleges,  Oxford. 

0 1^  Thfi)  Hebrew  Prophets.  The  Rev.  R,  L.  Ottley,  D.D.,  Canon 
^  I  of  Christ  Church  and  Regius  Professor  of  Pastoral  Theology 
lO  in  the  University  of  Oxford, 

Outlines  of  Old  Testament  Theology.  The  Rev.  C.  F.  Burney, 
D.Litt.,  Lecturer  in  Hebrew  at  St.  John’s  College,  Oxford. 


J 


The  Text  of  the  New  Testament.  The  Rev.  K.  Lake,  D.D., 
Professor  of  New  Testament  Exegesis  and  Early  Christian 
Literature  in  the  University  of  Leyden. 

Early  Christian  Doctrine. 

The  Rev,  Leighton  Pullan,  M.A. 

An  Elementary  History  of  the  Church  in  Great  Britain. 


TheVen.  W.  H,  Hutton,  B.D.,  Archdeacon  of  Northampton 
and  Canon  of  Peterborough. 


The  Reformation  in  Great  Britain. 

H.  O.  Wakeman,  M.A.,  late  Fellow  of  All  Souls  College, 
Oxford,  and  the  Rev.  Leighton  Pullan,  M.A. 

The  History  of  the  Book  of  Common  Prayer. 

The  Rev.  J.  H.  Maude,  M.A. ,  Examining  Chaplain  to  the 
Bishop  of  St.  Albans. 

The  Articles  of  the  Church  of  England. 

The  Rev.  B.  J.  Kidd,  D.D.  ,  Vicar  of  St.  Paul’s,  Oxford. 
In  2  Vols.  Vol.  I. — History  and  Explanation  of  Articles  i.-viii. 
Vol.  H. — Explanation  of  Articles  ix.-xxxix. 


May  also  be  had  in  one  vol,  2$.  net. 

The  Continental  Reformation.  The  Rev.  B.  J.  Kidd,  D.D. 


A  Manual  for  Confirmation.  The  Rev.  T.  Field,  D.D., 
Vicar  of  St.  Mary’s,  Nottingham. 

A  History  of  the  Church  to  325.  The  Rev,  H.  N.  Bate, 
M.A.,  Examining  Chaplain  to  the  Bishop  of  London. 

The  Church,  its  Ministry  and  Authority. 

The  Rev.  Darwell  Stone,  D.D. ,  Principal  of  Pusey  House, 
Oxford. 


A  History  of  the  American  Church  to  the  close  of  the  Nine¬ 
teenth  Century.  The  Right  Rev.  Leighton  Coleman, 
S.T.D.,  LLiD.,  Late  Bishop  of  Delaware,  U.S.A. 


London  :  Rivingtons,  34  King  Street,  Covent  Garden. 
V.  1913.  I 


Oxford  Church  Text  Books — Continued. 

The  Future  State.  The  Rev.  S.  C.  Gayford,  M.A., 

Vice- Principal  of  Bishops’  College,  Cheshunt, 

Evidences  of  Christianity.  The  Rev.  L.  Ragg,  M.A.,  ♦ 

Diocesan  Inspector  of  Religious  Education  for  the  Arch¬ 
deaconry  of  Northampton,  and  Examining  Chaplain  to  the 
Bishop  of  Peterborough. 

Scottish  Church  History.  The  Right  Rev.  Anthony  Mitchell, 
D.D.,  Bishop  of  Aberdeen. 

The  Teaching-  of  our  Lord. 

The  Rev.  Leighton  Pullan,  M.A. 

A  Short  Introduction  to  the  Literature  of  the  Old  Testament. 

The  Rev.  G.  H.  Box,  M.A. ,  Rector  of  Sutton,  Beds. 

The  Apostles’  Creed.  The  Rev.  A.  E.  Burn,  D.D., 

Vicar  of  Halifax  ;  Prebendary  of  Lichfield, 
and  Examining  Chaplain  to  the  Bishop  of  Lichfield. 

The  Nicene  Creed.  The  Rev.  A.  E.  Burn,  D.D. 

The  Athanasian  Creed.  The  Rev.  A.  E.  Burn,  D.D. 

THE  CHURCH  UNIVERSAL 
Brief  Histories  of  Her  Continuous  Life 

Edited  by  The  Ven.  W.  H.  PIUTTON,  B.D., 
Archdeacon  of  Northampton  and  Canon  of  Peterborough. 
The  Church  of  the  Apostles. 

The  Rev.  Lonsdale  Ragg,  M.A.  4s.  6d.  net. 

The  Church  of  the  Fathers.  98-461. 

The  Rev.  Leighton  Pullan,  M.A.  5s.  net. 

The  Church  and  the  Barbarians.  461-1003. 

The  Editor.  3s.  6d.  net. 

The  Church  and  the  Empire.  1003-1304. 

D.  J.  Medley,  M.A.,  Professor  of  History  in  the  University 
of  Glasgow.  4s.  6d.  net. 

The  Age  of  Schism.  1304-1503. 

Herbert  Bruce,  M.A.,  Professor  of  History  in  the  Univer¬ 
sity  College,  Cardiff.  3s.  6d.  net. 

The  Reformation.  1503-1648. 

The  Rev.  J.  P.  Whitney,  B.D.,  Professor  of  Ecclesiastical 
History  at  King’s  College,  London.  5s.  net. 

The  Age  of  Revolution.  1648-1815. 

The  Editor.  4s.  6d.  net. 

The  Church  of  Modern  Days.  1815-1900. 

The  Rev.  Leighton  Pullan,  M.A. 


London  :  Rivingtons,  34  King  Street,  Covent  Garden. 


2 


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Small  Fcap.  8vo.  is.  each,  net. 

ADyforD  Church  Cert  'BOOI10 

General  Editor— 'WvQ  Rev.  LEIGHTON  PULLAN,  M.A., 
Fellow  of  St.  John's  College^  and  Lecturer  in  Theology 
at  St.  fohn's  and  Oriel  Colleges^  Oxford. 

The  Athanasian  Creed.  By  the  Rev.  A.  E.  Burn,  D.D.,  Vicar 
of  Halifax,  and  Exa?nining  Chaplain  to  the  Bishop  of  Lichfield. 

A  Short  Introduction  to  the  Literature  of  the  Old  Testament. 

By  the  Rev.  G.  H,  Box,  M.A. ,  Rector  of  Sutton  ,  Bedfordshire. 

‘  It  is  packed  with  information  from  beginning  to  end,  and  presents  in  the 
briefest  possible  compass  what  are  now  the  generally  accepted  views  for  the 
composition  and  date  of  the  Old  Testament  writings.’ — Remezv  of  Theology 

and  Philosophy. 

The  Teaching  of  our  Lord.  By  the  Rev.  Leighton  Pullan. 

‘Mr.  Pullan  has  succeeded  in  packing  into  the  little  book  an  immense 
amount  of  matter,  and  in  spite  of  all  that  has  been  written  on  the  subject,  he 
has  presented  it  in  some  fresh  aspects.’ — Expository  Times. 

A  Short  History  of  the  Church  in  Scotland. 

By  the  Rev.  Anthony  Mitchell,  B.D.,  Principal  of  the  Theo¬ 
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‘  This  little  book  is  by  far  the  best  short  history  of  the  Scottish  Church  that 
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The  Apostles’  Creed.  By  the  Rev.  A.  E.  Burn,  D.D., 

‘Dr.  Burn  does  all  his  work  to  perfection.  This  will  be  the  student’s 
Introduction  to  the  Apostles’  Creed  for  years  to  come.’ — Expository  Times. 

The  Nicene  Creed.  By  the  Rev.  A.  E.  Burn,  D.D. 

‘  A  scholarly  little  work,  distinguished  by  the  best  features  of  the  series. 
Many  readers  will  be  grateful  to  Dr.  Burn  for  his  lucid  exposition  of  an  im¬ 
portant  subject.’ — Scotsman. 

Evidences  of  Christianity.  By  the  Rev.  L.  Ragg,  M.A., 

Prebendary  and  Vice-Chancellor  of  Lincoln  Cathedral. 

‘  He  presents  his  arguments  lucidly  and  calmly,  and  exhibits  the  whole  of 
the  Christian  system  centred  in  the  fact  of  the  Incarnation.’ — Church  Times. 

The  Church,  its  Ministry  and  Authority. 

By  the  Rev.  Darwell  Stone,  D.D.,  Librarian  of  Pusey  House, 

Oxford. 

‘It  briefly  and  clearly  conveys  much  information  concerning  the  facts  and 
doctrine  contained  in  the  Bible,  and  later  history,  with  regard  to  the  Church.’ 

Morning  Post. 

History  of  the  Church  to  A.  D.  325.  By  the  Rev.  H.  N.  Bate, 
M.A.,  Examining  Chaplain  to  the  Bishop  of  London. 

‘  Mr.  Bate  has  succeeded  beyond  belief.  He  has  produced  one  of  the  best 
volumes  of  the  series.’ — Expository  Times. 

The  Text  of  the  New  Testament.  New  and  Revised  Edition. 
By  the  Rev.  K.  Lake,  D.D.,  Professor  of  New  Testament  Exegesis 
and  Early  Christian  Literature  in  the  University  of  Leyden. 

‘  No  more  serviceable  manual  of  textual  criticism  is  to  be  found.’ — Spectator. 

Outlines  of  Old  Testament  Theology. 

By  the  Rev.  C.  F.  Burney,  D.Litt. ,  E'ellow,  Lecturer  in  Hebrew 
and  Librarian  of  St.  John' s  College,  Oxford. 

‘  Is  very  important,  and  answers  a  great  need.’ — University  Correspondent. 


The  Future  State.  J5y  the  Rev.  S.  C.  G.wford,  M.A., 

Vice-Principal  of  Bishops  College,  Cheshvnt. 

‘  This  book  quite  comes  up  to,  if  it  does  not  surpass,  the  standard  already 
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An  Elementary  History  of  the  Church  in  Great  Britain. 

By  the  Ven.  W.  H.  Hutton,  B.D.,  Archdeacon  of  Northampton. 

‘  It  is  quite  the  best  “  Elementary”  History  of  the  Church  in  this  land  that 
we  have.’ — Guardian. 

The  Reformation  in  Great  Britain.  By  H.  O.  Wakeman, 
M.A.,  Late  Fellow  of  All  Souls'  College,  Oxford,  and  the  Rev. 
Leighton  Pullan,  M.A. 

‘  A  brief  but  trustworthy  account.’ — Church  Quarte7-ly  Reviezv. 

Early  Christian  Doctrine.  By  the  Rev.LEiGHTON  Pullan, M.A. 

‘  An  admirable  sketch.’ — Guardian. 

A  Manual  for  Confirmation.  By  the  Rev,  T.  Field,  D.D., 

Warden  of  Radley  College. 

‘  His  manual  is,  we  think,  an  improvement  on  any  with  which  we  are 
acquainted.’ — Gziardian. 

The  Hebrew  Prophets.  By  the  Rev.  R.  L.  Ottley,  D.D., 
Canoft  of  Christ  Church  and  Regius  Professor  of  Pastoral  Theology 
in  the  University  of  Oxford. 

‘  Written  with  the  clearness  and  good  taste  which  h.abitually  mark  Mr.  Ottley’s 
work.’ — Church  Quarterly  Reviezv. 

The  History  of  the  Book  of  Common  Prayer. 

By  the  Rev.  J.  H.  Maude,  M.A.,  Examining  Chaplain  to  the 
Bishop  of  St.  Albans. 

‘  We  know  of  no  manual  which  provides  an  intelligent  knowledge  of  the 
Prayer-Book  in  a  more  concise,  accurate,  and  scholarly  manner.’ 

School  Guardiatt. 

The  Articles  of  the  Church  of  England.  In  Two  Volumes. 

Vol.  I. — History  and  Explanation  of  Articles  i.-viii. 

Vol.  II. — Explanation  of  Articles  ix.-xxxix. 

May  also  be  had  ut  One  Volume,  2S.  net. 

By  the  Rev.  B.  J.  Kidd,  D.D.,  Vicar  of  St.  Paul's,  Oxford. 

‘  It  supplies  exactly  what  is  wanted  for  beginners.’ — Guardiazt. 

‘  It  is  at  once  brief,  concise,  and  erudite.’ — Scotsman. 

The  Continental  Reformation.  By  the  Rev.  B.  J.  Kidd,  D.D. 

‘Mr.  Kidd  has  produced  a  really  admirable  little  book;  it  is  short,  inter¬ 
esting,  and  clear.’ — Saturday  Reviezv. 

A  History  of  the  American  Church  to  the  Close  of  the 
XIXth  Century.  By  the  Right  Rev.  Leighton  Coleman, 
S.T.D.,  LL.D.,  Late  Bishop  of  Delaware,  U.S.A. 

.  ‘  It  gives  a  lucid  and  interesting  account  of  a  chapter  of  Church  history  only 
ill  understood  in  this  country.’ — Scotsman. 


LONDON:  RIVINGTONS,  34  KING  STREET,  COVENT  GARDEN 


iD^forti  Cljurtlj  %txt  Booftss 


A  Short  Introduction  to 

The  Literature  of  the 
Old  Testament 


BY 

THE  REV.  G.  H.  BOX,  M.A. 

LECTURER  IN  RABBINICAL  HEBREW,  KING’S  COLLEGE,  LONDON  ; 
FORMERLY  SCHOLAR  OF  ST.  JOHN’s  COLLEGE,  OXFORD; 
SOMETIME  HEBREW  MASTER  AT  MERCHANT  TAYLORS’  SCHOOL,  LONDON  ; 
RECTOR  OF  SUTTON,  BEDFORDSHIRE 


RI VINGTONS 
34  /ir/NG  STREET,  CO  VENT  GARTEN 
LONDON 


I  9 1  I 


*»  fr  . 

•  *> 

f  «. 

•  “  .  Tr^  J  / 


PREFACE 


The  present  volume  has  been  written  with  the  needs  of 
beg^inners  constantly  in  view,  and  will,  it  is  hoped,  prove 
of  service  as  a  preparation  for  the  study  of  larger  works. 
It  is  intended  to  be  used  in  conjunction  with  another 
volume  in  the  present  series — that  by  Canon  R.  L. 
Ottley  on  The  Hebrew  Prophets.  Small  bibliographies,  in 
which  the  most  practically  useful  books  are  set  down, 
have  been  appended  to  the  chapter — and  section — head¬ 
ings.  No  attempt,  of  course,  has  been  made  to  render 
these  selections  in  any  sense  exhaustive.  The  student 
who  wishes  to  pursue  the  subject  further  will  naturally 
have  recourse  to  such  aids  as  Dr.  Driver’s  well-known 
Introduction  to  the  Literature  of  the  Old  Testament ,  which 
may  sometimes  be  usefully  supplemented  by  Cornill’s 
contribution  to  the  same  subject,  now  accessible  to 
English  readers  in  an  English  dress  under  the  title 
Introduction  to  the  Canonical  Books  of  the  Old  Testament 
(Williams  and  Norgate,  1907.)* 

G.  H.  BOX. 


December  1908. 


( '  O  N  1’  E  N S 


Part  1. — General  Introduction. 

CHAP. 

L  The  Canon  of  the  Old  Testament  in  Genera^ 
II.  The  Text  of  the  Old  Testament,  . 


PAGE 

1 

15 


Part  II.  — Special  Introduction. 

A.  The  Legislative  and  Historical  Books^ 
i.  'I'he  Hexateuch  (Pentateuch  and  Joshua), 

§  1.  Genesis^  ..•••• 
§  2.  Exodus^ 

§  3.  Leviticus,  .  .  .  .  • 

^  4.  Numbers,  .  .  .  .  • 

§  5.  Deuteronomy,  .... 
§  Ga.  Special  Passages  in  the  Pentateuch, 
§  66.  Joshua,  ...••• 
§  7.  The  Prophetical  and  Priestly  Narra¬ 
tives  of  the  Hexateuch, 

II.  The  Historical  Books  outside  the  Hexateuch, 

§  1.  The  Book  of  Judges, 

§  2.  The  Books  of  Samuel, 

§  3.  The  Books  of  Kings, 

§  4.  Chronicles  and  Ezra-Nehemiah, 

(а)  The  Books  of  Chronicles, 

(б)  Ezra-Nehemiah,  .  .  .  . 

iv 


29 

30 

36 

40 

43 

46 

49 

53 

56 

59 

64 

64 

69 

76 

83 

84 
89 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LITERATURE 

B.  Tlie  Prophetic  Literature. 

CHAP. 

III.  'I'he  Writing  Prophets^  .  .  .  . 

§  ].  The  Book  of  Isaial]_, 

§  2.  Jeremiah,  .  .  .  .  . 

§  3.  Ezekiel,  •  •  .  .  . 

§  4.  The  Minor  Prophets 

(Book  of  the  Twelve  Prophets),  . 

C.  Poetical  and  Didactic  Literature. 

IV.  The  Poetical  and  Didactic  Books  (Psalms, 

Proverbs,  Job,  the  Five  Megilloth),  . 

§  1.  The  Psalms, . 

§  2.  Proverbs,  ..... 

§  3.  Job,  ...... 

^  4.  The  Five  Megilloth  (Canticles, 
Ruth,  Lamentations,  Ecclesiastes, 
E.sther),  ..... 

1.  Canticles,  .... 

2.  Ruth,  ...... 

3.  Lamentations,  .... 

4.  Koheleth  (Ecclesiastes), . 

5.  Esther,  . 

y  *  •  •  •  , 

D.  Apocalyptic  Literature. 

V.  The*Book  of  Daniel, . 

Index  . 


PAGE 

05 

05 

100 

105 

107. 


123 

123 

120 

131 


1.34 

134 

135 
130 

137 

138 


1.30 

142 


ABBREVIATIONS  EMPLOYED 


JD.0. 2".  =  Literature  of  the  Old  Testament. 

»Sf.  ZJ.0. 2’.=  Sacred  Books  of  the  Old  Testament  (a  series  of 
Critical  Hebrew  Texts  of  the  different  Hebrew 
Books,  edited  by  Paul  Haupt;  a  corresponding 
series  of  English  translations  has  been  issued  by  the 
same  editor), 

/.  C.  C.  =  International  Critical  Commentaries  (a  series  of 
Commentaries  published  by  T.  &  T.  Clark,  Edin¬ 
burgh). 

t/'.Q.ii.  =  Jewish  Quarterly  Review 


INTRODUCTION 


PART  L~GENERAL  INTRODUCTION 

CHAPTER  I 

THE  CANON  OP  THE  OLD  TESTAMENT  IN  GENERAL 

The  title  ^Old  Testament’  is,  of  course,  a  Christian  one, 
and  is  derived  from  II.  Cor.  iii.  14,  where  it  is  applied  to 
the  sacred  books  or  Scriptures  generally  which  were 
accepted  by  the  Jews  as  Holy  Scripture.^  The  title  is 
rendered  more  correctly  in  the  Revised  Version  the  old 
covenant  (17  Trakaia  dLaOrjKT]),  and  is  a  descriptive  desig¬ 
nation  applied  to  such  books  ^because  in  them  the 
conditions  and  principles  of  the  older  covenant  were 
recorded.’ 2  The  Jews  employ  different  designations 
which  will  be  referred  to  below. 

Division  of  the  Old  Testament  Canon. — As  is  well  known, 
the  Palestinian  Jews  divided  the  Canon  of  the  Old  Testa¬ 
ment  into  three  parts:  (1)  the  Law  (Heb.  tord),  {2)  the 
Prophets  (Heb.  nShiim),  and  (3)  the  Writings  =  ‘ 
grapha’  (Heb.  kethubim).  This  threefold  division  is  of 
great  importance  as  it  corresponds  to  three  well-defined 
stages  by  which  the  sacred  collection  came  into  existence. 
The  Alexandrine  Jews,  on  the  other  hand,  acknowledged 
a  canonical  collection  in  which  the  books  were  arranged 
in  a  different  order,  and  other  books,  not  recognised  by 
the  Palestinians,  were  included  (  =  the  so-called  ^Apoc¬ 
rypha  *)A  No  trace  exists  among  the  Alexandrines  of  the 

1  S.  Paul,  in  the  context  (II.  Cor.  iii.  15),  refers  specifically  to 
the  Pentateuch.  His  Bible  would  probably  be  the  Alexandrine 
rather  than  the  Palestinian  canonical  collection. 

2  Grimm-Thayer,  Lex.,  s.v.  dLadrjKr],  p.  137.  Under  the  in¬ 
fluence  of  Heb.  ix.  16  the  Vulgate  always  renders  diaOriKT),  testa- 
mentum. 

3  For  the  Alexandrine  Canon,  see  Cornill,  Introd.  to  Can. 
Books  of  O.T.  (E.T.),  pp.  485  ff.  ;  Buhl,  Canon  and  Text  of 
O.T.  (E.T.),  pp.  43  ff. 


2 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LITERATURE 


threefold  division  which  is  so  important  a  feature  in  the 
Palestinian  Canon.  The  Palestinian  arrangement,  how¬ 
ever,  was  ultimately  accepted  by  all  Jews,  and  is  the  one 
followed  in  our  modern  Hebrew  Bibles,  which  reflect  the 
usage  embodied  in  Hebrew  MSS.  ^ 

The  first  division  of  the  Hebrew  Canon,  the  tora,  con¬ 
sists  of  the  ^five  books  of  Moses,’  which  make  up  the 
Pentateuch.  The  latter  term  is  derived  from  the  Greek 
r;  irevTaTfvxos^  SC.  jSt/SAoy,  which  corresponds  to  the  tech¬ 
nical  Hebrew  designation tord,  i.e.  ^the 
five-fifths  of  the  Law.’  The  five  books  of  the  Tord  are 
usually  referred  to  in  Jewish  writings  by  the  first  word 
(or  one  of  the  first  words)  of  the  Hebrew  text  of  the 
hooks. 

Thus  Genesis  =  Exodus  r\)Diy  Leviticus 

.  ...  >  .  ... ..  jj 

Snp*!  Numbers  (the  fifth  word:  Jerome,  however, 

cites  it  as  Vaieda}jber  =  “\'2'l^\  which  is  the  actual  first  word), 

and  Deuteronomy  ^  ^  ^ 

•t:-  v: 

More  general  designations  may,  however,  have  been 
employed  occasionally.  One  such  occurs  in  the  case  of 
Leviticus,  which  is  described  sometimes  under  the  title 
^the  law  of  priests’  (Heh.  torath  kuhdnim). 

The  second  division,  consisting  of  the  ^  Prophets,’  is 
subdivided  into  two  parts,  ‘^the  former  prophets’ 
(Heb.  nebizm  I'lshonmi)  and  ‘^the  latter  prophets’  (Heh. 
nShihn  ’aharonim).  Under  ^the  former  prophets’  are 
reckoned  the  four  historical  books,  Joshua,  Judges, 
Samuel,  Kings  (the  two  last  counted  as  each  a  single 
book).  The  prophetic  books  proper  are  grouped  under 
the  ‘  latter  prophets,’  and  include  Isaiah,  Jeremiah,  and 
Ezekiel,  together  with  ^  the  Twelve  ’  (Heb.  shenem  ‘dsdr : 
Gk.  TO  AccdeKan-pocfirjTov),  i.e.  the  twelve  minor  prophets, 
which  in  the  Hebrew.  Canon  are  reckoned  as  a  single 
book  :  total,  eight  books. 

The  at  first  sight  surprising  fact  that  the  four  historical  books, 
Joshua,  Judges,  Samuel,Kings,  are  included  among  the  ‘prophets’ 


1  The  Hebrew  Scriptures,  consisting  of  these  three  divisions,  are 
designated  by  the  abbreviation  ^y'r)>  D''^irhD’l  Il'l'iri* 


THE  CANON  OF  THE  OLD  TESTAMENT  H 


demands  some  explanation.  xVccording  to  Jewish  tradition  both 
Judges  and  Samuel  were  written  by  the  prophet  Samuel,  and 
Kings  by  the  proiJiet  Jeremiah.  The  prophetic  character  of 
Joshua  was  guaranteed  by  Numb,  xxvii.  18  (‘  a  man  in  whom  is 
the  spirit’),  and  explicitly  asserted  by  Ben  Sira  (Ecclus.  xlvi.  1 : 
‘Joshua  .  .  .  successor  of  Moses  in  ’).  The  tradition 

has,  of  course,  no  direct  historical  value.  But  indirectly  it,  per¬ 
haps,  reflects  the  feeling  which  operated  in  the  first  instance  to 
bring  these  books  into  the  proiJietic  collection,  the  feeling,  viz., 
that  they  are  dominated  by  the  prophetic  spirit,  and  largely 
represent  the  prophetic  point  of  view.  As  a  matter  of  fact,  the 
editors  who  w^ere  responsible  for  their  present  form  belonged  to 
the  prophetic  school  which  was  so  influential  in  the  Deutero- 
nomic  reform.  The  division  of  the  collection  into  ‘  former  ’  and 
‘latter’  may  have  been  an  afterthought  (c/.  Robertson  Smith, 
O.  p,  175). 

The  order  of  the  three  greater  prophetic  books  is  not  absolutely 
fixed  in  the  traditional  arrangement.  According  to  a  well-known 
and  probably  trustworthy  tradition,  preserved  in  the  Babylonian 
Talmud  {Baba  bathra  14  b),  the  original  order  was :  Jeremiah, 
Ezekiel,  Isaiah,  and  this  is  followed,  as  a  rule,  in  German  and 
French  MSS.  of  the  Hebrew  text.i  In  this  arrangement  there 
may  be  ‘a  reminiscence  of  the  fact  that  Isaiah,  as  a  book,  is 
younger  than  Jeremiah  and  Ezekiel’;  but  it  may  have  another 
explanation,  viz.  a  desire  to  place  Jeremiah  and  Kings,  which 
was  supposed  to  have  been  written  by  Jeremiah,  in  juxta¬ 
position. 

The  third  division  of  the  Canon,  wdiicii  is  made  up  of 
^  the  writing's  ’  (Hagiographa),  consists  of  the  three  great 
poetical  hooks ;  Psalms,  Proverbs,  Job  ;  the  '  five  megilloth  ’ 
or  ^  Rolls,’  so  called  because  they  are  read  liturgically  at 
certain  special  seasons  in  the  synagogue,  viz.  Canticles 
at  Passover,  Ruth  at  Pentecost  (Feast  of  W^eeks,  a 
Harvest-Festival),  Lamentations  on  the  9th  of  Ab  (the 
day  of  the  great  fast  commemorating  the  destruction  of 
the  Temple),  Koheleth  (Ecclesiastes)  at  Sukkoth  (Feast 
of  Tabernacles),  and  Esther  at  Purim  ;  and  lastly,  the  three 
hooks :  Daniel,  Ezra-Nehemiah,  and  Chronicles ;  total, 
eleven  books. 

There  is  in  the  Hebrew  authorities  considerable  variation  in 
the  order  of  the  books  composing  the  Hagiographa.  In  the 


1  The  Masoretic  order=Isaiah,  Jeremiah,  Ezekiel,  is  followed 
in  the  oldest  dated  Heb.  MS.  (the  St.  Petersburg  Codex,  dated  91G 
A.n.),  and  is  the  one  usual  in  Spanish  MSS.  and  printed  editions 
of  the  Hebrew  Bible. 


4 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LITERATURE 


Talmud  the  sequence  is :  Ruth,  Psalms,  Job,  Proverbs,  Ecclesi¬ 
astes,  Canticles,  Lamentations,  Daniel,  Esther,  Ezra  (including 
Nehemiah),  Chronicles:  the  Masoretes^  adopted  the  order; 
Chronicles,  Psalms,  Job,  Proverbs,  Ruth,  Canticles,  Ecclesiastes, 
Lamentations,  Esther,  Daniel,  Ezra  (this  is  usual  in  Spanish  MSS. 
of  the  Hebrew  text);  while  German  MSS.,  as  a  rule,  have  the 
regular  order  given  above.  It  is  probable  that  the  Psalms 
stood  at  the  head  of  this  division  when  the  collection  was  first 
formed. 

No  trustworthy  tradition  as  to  the  stages  by  which  the 
three  collections  of  the  sacred  writings  were  formed  has 
come  down  to  us.  But  the  threefold  division,  as  is 
generally  agreed,  is  explicitly  recognised  in  the  Pre¬ 
face  to  the  Greek  Version  of  Ecclesiasticus,  written 
by  the  grandson  of  the  author  of  the  book,  c.  1»32  b.c. 
Here  ^  the  law  and  the  prophets  and  the  others  who 
followed  upon  them  ’  (xat  toov  aXkwu  rcov  icar^  avrovs 
^)Kokovdq<6To)u)  are  referred  to,  and,  again,  ^  the  law 
and  the  prophets  and  the  other  books  of  our  fathers’ 
(xai  rd  (iXka  Trdrpia  /3t/3Xta),  ^the  law,  the  prophets, 
and  the  rest  of  the  books  ’  (kuI  to.  \oL7ra  r^v 
The  third  division,  it  will  be  noticed,  in  all  these 
passages  is  described  in  a  somewhat  indefinite  way 
(^the  rest  of  the  books,’  etc.),  but  there  is  no  reason  to 
doubt  that,  by  the  side  of  ^  the  law  and  the  prophets,’  it 
implies  the  existence  of  a  third  division,  the  later  title  of 
which  (‘^the  writings’)  is  hardly  less  vague.  The  very 
vagueness  and  uncertainty  of  its  designation  suggest  that 
the  limits  of  the  third  collection  had  not  yet  been 
defined,  and  that  the  collection  itself  may  still  have  been 
incomplete.  The  tripartite  division  of  the  Canon  is  also 
clearly  indicated  in  Luke  xxiv.  44  (^all  things  .  .  . 
which  are  written  in  the  Law  of  Moses  and  the  prophets 
and  the  psalms  concerning  Me’),  but  this  is  the  only 
passage  in  the  New  Testament  which  makes  explicit 
mention  of  it. 

No  sound  inference  can  be  founded  upon  the  mention  in 
II.  Macc.  i.  1-2,  18,  of  Nehemiah’s  alleged  collection  of  writings 
(‘how,  founding  a  library,  he  gathered  together  the  things  con- 


1  The  Masora  (‘tradition’)  is  the  tradition  of  the  text  which 
was  preserved  and  embodied  in  the  vowel-points  elaborated  by 
the  Masoretic  scholars  of  the  seventh  to  the  ninth  century  a.d. 


THE  CANON  OF  THE  OLD  I’ESTAMENT  5 


ceriiing  the  kings  and  prophets,  and  the  (writings)  of  David,  and 
letters  of  kings  about  sacred  gifts  ’).  The  passage  in  which  this 
occurs  belongs  to  one  of  the  spurious  epistles  which  are  found  in 
II.  Macc.  A  more  definite  indication  which  points  to  the  exist¬ 
ence  of  a  canonical  collection  is  found  in  the  Ezra-apocalypse 
(  =  11.  Ezra)  where  (ch.  xiv.  39-48)  94  books  are  referred  to,  of 
which  70  are  to  be  delivered  ‘only  to  such  as  be  wise  among  the 
people,’  while  24  were  to  be  published  openl3^  Here  a  sharp 
distinction  is  drawn  between  the  canonical  writings,  24  in 
number,  which  are  openly  and  universally  acknowledged,  and 
an  esoteric  literature  (the  70  books)  which  is  divulged  only  to 
the  initiated  (the  writing  down  of  the  entire  94  is  ascribed  to 
Ezra). 

The  composition  of  II.  Ezra  belongs  probably  to  the  end  of  the 
first  century  a.b.  That  Chronicles  occupied  its  present  position 
in  the  Hebrew  Canon  already  in  the  New  Testament  period  may 
be  inferred  from  Luke  xi.  51  (  =  Matt.  xxiii.  35).  Here  the  men¬ 
tion  of  the  murder  of  Abel  (Gen.  iv.)  and  of  Zechariah  (II.  Chron. 
xxiv.  20-22)  gains  point  from  the  fact  that  the  record  of  the 
murders  is  drawn  from  the  first  and  the  last  books  of  the  Old 
Testament  according  to  the  canonical  arrangement. 

The  famous  Talmudic  passage  already  referred  to  (Baba  bathra 
14  b),  though  destitute  of  direct  historical  value,  throws  some 
light  on  the  principles  which  ultimately  operated  to  fix  the 
Canon.  After  enumerating  the  supposed  authors  of  certain 
Biblical  books,  it  concludes :  ‘  Ezra  wrote  his  own  book  and  the 
genealogies  of  the  Book  of  Chronicles  as  far  as  himself.’  It  may 
fairly  be  inferred  from  this  that,  according  to  the  Talmudic 
view,  all  the  canonical  books  were  in  existence  by  the  time  of 
Ezra.  In  the  same  Talmudic  passage  it  is  declared  that  ‘the 
men  of  the  Great  Synagogue  wrote  Ezekiel,  the  xii.  (minor  pro¬ 
phets),  Daniel,  and  Esther.’  Most  moderns  regard  ‘the  Great 
Synagogue’  as  ‘a  dream  of  the  Jewish  Doctors’  (c/.  Ryle, 
Canon  of  Old  Testament.  Exc.  A). 

The  Idea  of  the  Canon  (Canonicity). — It  is  important 
that  the  ideas  of  collection  and  canonisation  should  be 
kept  distinct.  Collections  of  writings  w  ere  formed^  and 
more  or  less  defined,  before  they  w  ere  accorded  canonical 
rank  in  the  strict  sense  of  the  term.  What  suffices  to 
make  a  book  or  collection  of  books  canonical.^  The 
essential  marks  of  canonicity  involve  the  presence  of  the 
following  factors  according  to  Josephus  (c.  Apion,  i.  8), 
who  represents  the  views  current  in  Pharisaic  circles  in 
Palestine  during  the  latter  half  of  the  first  century,  a.d.^ 

(a)  Canonical  writings  are  0eoO  Sdygara,  decrees  of 
God,  and  as  such  are  to  be  believed  implicitly ;  they 

^  Holscher,  Kanonisch.  und  ApoTcryph,  §  1, 


OLD  tp:stamp:nt  lit?]rature 


emanate  entirely  from  the  prophetic  period  ;  in  other 
words,  they  are  inspired  ; 

(b)  In  contradistinction  to  all  other  (profane)  litera¬ 
ture  they  bear  the  specific  character  of  holiness  ; 

(c)  Their  number  is  exactly  determined  ; 

(d)  Their  wording  is  inviolable. 

In  the  time  of  Josephus  the  idea  of  the  Canon,  thus 
strictly  defined,  seems  to  have  been  peculiar  to  the 
Pharisees. 

Josephus’  view  of  canonicity  practically  coincides  with  the 
Rabbinical.  ‘Writing  for  Greek  readers,  he  merely  avoids  tech¬ 
nical  Rabbinical  terms.  The  term  canon  is,  of  course,  derived 
from  the  Greek  KavCov,  which  means  ‘carpenter’s  rule,’  but  was 
early  employed  by  metonymy  with  the  meaning  norm,  rule, 
standard.  As  applied  to  a  collection  of  sacred  writings,  ‘a 
double  meaning  is  implicit;  they  are  normal,  i.e.  they  give 
adequate  expression  to  the  Divine  Revelation,  and,  as  a  con¬ 
sequence  of  this,  they  are  also  normative,  i.e.  they  set  the 
standard  for  us  as  a  rule  of  faith  and  life’  (Cornill,  p.  464). 
According  to  Buhl  {Canon,  ]).  1 )  the  use  of  the  term  in  a  technical 
sense  is  not  earlier  than  the  ])atristic  writers  of  the  fourth  cen¬ 
tury  A.o.  By  the  Rabbis  the  idea  of  .canonicity  was  expressed  in 
various  ways.  The  most  striking  is  the  expression  ‘defile  the 
hands  ’  (Heb.  timme  ’eth  ha-yddaim),  which  was  first  employed, 
apparently,  by  R.  Johanan  b.  Zakkai  (first  century  a.d.).  The 
sacred  writings  which  were  recognised  as  canonical  were  invested 
by  the  Pharisees  with  so  holy  a  character  that  all  contact  with 
them  was  regarded  as  producing  a  state  of  levitical  uncleanness, 
and  demanded  a  ritual  washing  of  the  hands.  In  this  way  their 
sacrosanct  character  was  emphasised. 

The  definitive  fixing  of  the  Canon  only  took  place  in 
the  second  century  a.d.  It  was  then  carried  out  under 
the  pressure  of  overmastering  necessity.  After  the 
destruction  of  the  Jewish  state,  and  the  disappearance 
of  the  Temple  and  its  cultus,  the  sacred  Scriptures  be¬ 
came  the  fundamental  factor  in  Israel’s  continued  exist¬ 
ence  as  a  people.  Israel  became  ‘  the  people  of  the 
Book,’  i.c.  the  people  whose  life  was  to  be  regulated 
throughout  in  accordance  with  the  precepts  of  the  Divine 
Revelation  embodied  in  the  Law.  It  was  therefore  a 
matter  of  urgent  importance  to  define  with  exact  pre¬ 
cision  what  books  were  to  be  accepted  as  inspired  and 
possessing  a  divine  character. 

This  process  was  not  accomplished  without  some  con¬ 
troversy  Doubts  had  been  expressed  regarding  certain 


THE  CANON  OF  THE  OLD  TESTAMENT  7 


books  as  to  whether  they  ^  defiled  the  hands^’  i.e.  whether 
they  were  worthy  of  being  accorded  canonical  dignity. 
The  books  in  question  were  Canticles,  Koheleth  (Ecclesi¬ 
astes),  and  Esther.^  At  a  Rabbinical  synod  held  at 
Jainnia  c.  100  a.d.,  the  question  was  finally  decided  in 
favour  of  the  disputed  books.  In  the  Mishna,  which  was 
compiled  in  its  present  form  c.  200  a.d.,  the  equal 
canonicity  of  all  twenty-four  holy  books  is  fully  recog¬ 
nised. 

Regarding  the  Book  of  Ezekiel  it  is  recorded  in  the  Talmud 
that  difficulties  were  felt  because  Ezekiel’s  words  contradict  those 
of  the  Tora  (in  the  prescriptions  regarding  the  restored  Temple 
at  the  end  of  the  book),  and  that  the  book  would  have  been 
‘hidden’  had  not  R.  Hananja  b.  Hiskia  (a  contemporary  of 
Gamaliel  i.,  the  teacher  of  S.  Paul)  reconciled  these  disagree¬ 
ments.  An  attempt  was  ahso  made  ‘to  hide’  (Heb.  lignoz'. 
cf.  Gcnizd=a,  place  where  such  ‘hiding’  was  effected)  the  Book 
of  Proverbs,  about  which  difficulties  existed.  In  both  these  cases, 
it  should  be  noted,  the  question  raised  is  not  whether  these  books 
‘defile  the  hands.’  Their  canonical  character  was  not  disputed. 
What  was  aimed  at,  apparently,  was  their  exclusion  from  public 
liturgical  reading  in  the  synagogue  [this  is  the  probable  meaning 
of  the  term  ‘to  hide’].  It  is,  perhaps,  not  without  significance 
that  no  citation  occurs  in  the  New  Testament  from  Esther  and 
Koheleth,  whose  canonicity  was  called  in  question  as  stated 
above. 

In  definitely  fixing  the  limits  of  the  Canon  the  Rabbis 
were  governed  by  a  principle  which  admits  of  clear  and 
precise  statement.  The  standard  of  canonicity  was  deter¬ 
mined  in  accordance  with  the  theory  that  inspiration  was 
active  within  a  fixed  period.  This  period  was  delimited 
as  extending  from  Moses  to  Ezra.  Only  writings  which 
were  believed  to  have  been  produced  within  this  period 
were  recognised  as  canonical.  The  period  subsequent  to 
the  time  of  Ezra-Nehemiah  marked  the  extinction  of 
prophecy.  Books  which,  as  a  matter  of  fact,  were  of 
later  production  and  yet  were  admitted  into  the  Canon, 
were  only  accorded  this  position  because  they  were 
regarded  as  possessing  a  character  which  brought  them 
within  the  required  limit. 

It  must  be  remembered  that  this  is  the  later  Rabbinical  theory 


1  Jonah  and  Ruth  are  also  mentioned  in  one  passage  as  the 
subject  of  such  a  discussion. 


8 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LITERATURE 


in  accordance  with  which  the  limits  of  the  Canon  were  officially 
fixed.  As  a  matter  of  fact  the  collection  of  the  Books  composing 
Holy  Scripture  had  long  been  more  or  less  defined,  and  the  pro¬ 
cess  of  collection  had  been  determined  by  historical  causes,  among 
which  the  illuminated  selective  sense  of  the  pious  community 
exercised  a  very  real  and  profound  influence.  Josephus  (c. 
Apion.  i.  8),  explaining  why  twenty-two  Books  (as  he  reckoned 
them)  which  have  been  written  from  Moses  till  the  reign  of 
Artaxerxes,  king  of  the  Persians,  ^  alone  enjoy  canonical  authority 
among  the  Jews  (are  considered  to  be  ‘  decrees  of  God’)  explains 
this  as  being  due  to  ‘the  precise  and  definite  succession  of  the 
prophets’  (Sid,  .  .  .  ruiu  'irpocp'^TCov  d/cpt/S?)  diadoxw)-  In 
other  words,  they  emanate  from  the  period  during  which  the 
prophetic  spirit  had  been  maintained  in  an  unbroken  succession 
of  prophets  and  was  active  and  alive.  In  the  technical  language 
of  the  Rabbis  this  period  is  denoted  by  the  term  up  to  this  point 
(Heb.  '^y).  The  period  that  follows  is  described  as  from 

this  point  onwards  (Heb.  |X3^3) :  e.g.  ‘The  books  of  Ben 

Sira  and  all  the  books  which  were  written /rom  this  point  omvards 
(i.e.  after  the  age  of  Ezra  and  his  associates)  do  not  defile  the 
hands’  {Tos.  Yadaim,  ii.  13). 

In  accordance  with  the  Rabbinical  theory  the  superior 
limit  of  this  inspiration-period  is  the  time  of  Moses. 
Before  Moses  no  canonical  Scripture  can  have  been 
written.  This  view  is,  doubtless_,  based  upon  the  histori¬ 
cal  position  of  the  Tora^  which  was  the  first  section  of 
the  Scriptures  to  secure  official  embodiment  and  always 
occupied  the  place  of  honour  in  the  collection  of  the 
Sacred  Books.  But  same  time,  another  motive 

may,  as  Holscher  (op.  cit.  §  5)  contends,  have  been  at 
work.  The  Maccabean  period,  and  the  time  that 
followed,  was  marked  by  a  vast  quickening  of  religious 
life  and  hopes,  which  found  characteristic  expression  in 
apocalyptic  hooks.  These  writings,  as  is  well  known,  were 
largely  put  forth  in  the  names  of  the  great  heroic  figures 
of  old,  such  as  Enoch,  Abraham,  the  Twelve  Patriarchs, 
and  even  Adam  and  Eve.^  The  vogue  of  this  literature 

^  Artaxerxes  Longimanus  (464-424),  in  whose  reign  Ezra  accom¬ 
plished  his  work,  is  undoubtedly  meant. 

2  These  pseudepigraphic  books  are  by  no  means  destitute  of 
religious  value.  Probably  the  material  embodied  in  them  was 
largely  derived  from  popular  tradition,  and  particular  lines  of  the 
tradition  may  really  have  been  supposed  to  go  back  to  the  heroic 
figures  of  antiquity.  The  writers  believed  they  were  giving 
literary  expression  to  this  old  tradition.  Cf.  Religion  and  Wor¬ 
ship  of  Synagogue,  p.  35. 


THE  CANON  OF  THE  OLD  TESTAMENT  9 


— which  seems  to  have  been  considerable  among  certain 
sections  of  the  people — constituted  a  distinct  danger  to 
the  older  collections  of  religious  literature  acknowledged 
in  official  orthodox  (Pharisaic)  circles.  ^  What  availed 
the  age  of  the  Tora^  which  Moses  had  received,  in  face 
of  the  revelation  which  in  the  primaeval  period  had  been 
vouchsafed  to  the  Patriarchs,  to  Noah,  Enoch,  and  even 
Adam.^’  The  apocalyptic  literature  itself  shows  traces 
of  a  certain  feeling  of  superiority  {cf.  Book  of  Enoch, 
civ.  11-13;  and  especially  II.  Ezra  xiv.  44-470-  Hence 
the  necessity  felt  by  the  Teachers  of  the  Law  for  arriving 
at  some  principle  for  safeguarding  the  superior  position 
of  the  older  religious  literature,  and  this  was  found  in 
the  theory  of  the  prophetic  period  (Moses  to  Ezra).  All 
literature  falling  outside  these  limits  was  necessarily 
excluded  by  this  criterion,  and  so  the  Books  of  Enoch 
and  Ben  Sira  share  a  similar  fate. 

The  Book  of  Ben  Sira  [Ecclesiasticus]  is  a  striking  example  of 
the  operation  of  this  law.  It  was  highly  esteemed  by  the  orthodox 
and  is  not  infrequently  cited  in  the  Talmud,  but  did  not  secure  a 
place  in  the  Canon.  The  anti-apocalyptic  bias  of  the  Teachers 
of  the  Law  seems  to  have  become  more  pronounced  as  time  went 
on.  It  is  a  significant  fact  that  the  Book  of  Daniel  is  the  only 
purely  apocalyptic  book  to  be  admitted  into  the  Old  Testament 
canonical  collection.  Apocalyptic  writings  of  a  subsequent  date 
were  not  accepted  by  the  Teachers  of  the  Law.  Probably  it  was 
due  to  this  anti-apocalyptic  bias  that  writings  associated  with 
such  names  as  Elijah,  Isaiah,  Baruch — which  would  not  fall 
within  the  exclusive  rule  referred  to  above — gained  no  official 
recognition. 

The  complete  collection  of  sacred  hooks  which  were 
included  in  the  Palestinian  Canon  numbers,  according  to 
the  ordinary  reckoning,  twenty-four  (5-f8-bll).  The 
earliest  attestation  of  this  number  is  11.  Ezra  xiv.  44 
(94-70  books  =  24).  In  the  Talmud  and  Midrash  the 
Old  Testament  is  regularly  termed  'the  twenty-four 
holy  scriptures’  (tjinpn  ^113  Yb)  or  'the  twenty-four 
books’  (D''“lSD  YY)-  Jerome  also  mentions  this  numer¬ 
ation.  Another  reckoning,  however,  is  met  with. 
Josephus  (c.  Apion,  i.  8)  expressly  says  that  the  Jewish 
Scriptures  contained  twenty-two  books,  in  accordance 
with  the  number  of  letters  in  the  Hebrew  alphabet  (so 

1  II.  Ezra  is  an  apocalyptic  book — the  only  example  of  such  in 
our  official  Apocrypha. 


10 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LITERATURE 


also  Origen,  Epiplianius^  and  Jerome).  This  total  seems 
to  have  been  obtained  by  combining  Ruth  with  Judges 
and  Lamentations  with  Jeremiah.  Holscher  {op.  cit.) 
argues  that  this  arrangement  is  the  original  one  ;  but 
such  a  view  is  improbable.  It  is  noteworthy  that  the 
LXX.  rendering  of  Ruth  is  by  a  different  hand  from  that 
of  Judges^  and  of  Lamentations  from  that  of  Jeremiah. 
The  reckoning  is  probably  an  artificial  one. 

The  Formation  of  the  Canonical  Collection :  (1)  the  Tora. 
— It  has  already  been  pointed  out  that  the  three  collec¬ 
tions  of  Books  which  make  up  the  Old  Testament  Scrip¬ 
tures  had  already  come  into  existence  and  been  defined 
as  collections  before  they  were  invested  with  strict  canon¬ 
ical  authority.  The  first  of  these  collections  to  assume  a 
more  or  less  fixed  shape  and  acquire  official  authority 
was  that  of  the  Tora  of  Moses  or  Pentateuch.  The 
beginning  of  this  process  may  be  traced  in  the  solemn 
promulgation  of  the  Deuteronomic  Code,  and  its  public 
acceptance  by  the  representatives  of  the  nation  as 
binding  law,  in  the  eighteenth  year  of  Josiah,  i.e.  G21  b.c. 
(11.  Kings  xxiii.  1-7).  Another  and  more  important 
stage  is  marked  by  national  acceptance  of  the  Tora  of 
Ezra  in  444  b.c.  {cf.  Neh.  viii.-x.).  It  is  probable  that 
the  ^law’  published  by  Ezra  on  this  famous  occasion 
was  not  the  entire  Pentateuch,  but  the  recently  compiled 
Priestly  Code  (P),  in  its  original  form.  It  may  be  pre¬ 
sumed  that  some  time  in  the  interval  between  G21  and 
444  the  Deuteronomic  law-book  (D)  had  been  united 
with  the  great  national  history-book  which  had  been 
formed  by  the  fusion  of  the  Jahvistic  with  the  Elohistic 
narratives  (JE).  In  this  way  JE  had  been  united  with 
D — the  Mosaic  law-book  with  the  national  history. 
After  P  had  been  solemnly  recognised  and  accepted, 
Ezra  would  naturally  take  steps  to  secure  its  incorpora¬ 
tion  with  JED.  This  process  was  effected  probably  not 
very  much  later  than  444  b.c.^  by  a  redactor  or  possibly 
a  school  of  writers,  who  worked  in  P  into  JED,  and 
edited  the  whole  in  the  spirit  of  the  Priestly  Code.  The 
Priestly  Code  extends  into  the  Book  of  Joshua,  but  it  is 
highly  probable  that  this  section  had  been  disjoined  from 
the  rest  well  before  the  time  of  Ezra.  Thus  the 


1  According  to  Cornill,  between  440  and  400  n.o. 


THE  CANON  OF  THE  OLD  TESTAMENT  11 


redactor  or  redactors,  wlio  united  the  Mosaic  part  of  P 
with  JED  soon  after  444  b.c.,  may  be  regarded  as  the 
compilers  of  the  Pentateuch  in  substantially  its  present 
form.  But  it  must  not  be  supposed  that  the  Tora  was 
^  canonised  ’  by  Ezra,  in  the  strict  sense.  It  became 
authoritative  as  containing  the  ^  Law,’  but  the  letter  of 
the  Law  was  not  yet  inviolable — its  text  was  not  yet  fixed. 
The  process  of  redaction  went  on  long  after  the  time  of 
Ezra.  But  the  Law-Book  secured  an  unique  position  of 
authority  in  the  Jewish  community  which  it  has  ever 
since  retained.  There  was,  as  yet,  no  formal  Canon,  but 
there  may  be  said  to  have  come  into  existence  a  material 
one.  Not  the  Law-Book  as  such  but  the  Law  contained  in 
it  became  the  ^  Canon  ’  of  the  community.  The  fact  that 
the  Samaritan  community  to  this  day  acknowledges  only 
the  Tora  as  Holy  Scripture  is  eloquent  proof  of  its 
originally  distinct  and  unique  existence  as  an  authori¬ 
tative  collection. 

The  growth  of  the  New  Testament  Canon  offers  a  striking 
analogy.  Before  the  Canon  of  the  New  Testament  had  been 
delimited  the  Christian  community  possessed  a  ‘material’ 
Canon  in  the  traditional  words  of  the  Lord. 

(2)  The  Prophetic  Collection. — The  historical  books 
which  make  up  what  is  known  as  ^  the  former  prophets  ’ 
(Joshua,  Judges,  Samuel,  Kings)  form  the  immediate 
continuation  of  the  narrative  part  of  the  Pentateuch,  and 
are,  indeed,  organically  connected  with  its  literary 
factors.  In  particular,  the  Priestly  Code  extends  through 
the  Book  of  Joshua.  Thus  in  its  original  form  P  must 
have  included  an  account  of  the  conquest  of  Canaan  and 
the  division  of  the  land  among  the  twelve  tribes.  The 
separation  of  Joshua  from  the  Pentateuch  was  effected 
artificially  when  the  Tora  of  Moses,  as  containing  the 
binding  rule  of  life,  was  given  a  position  of  special  and 
unique  authority.  In  the  literary  investigation  of  the 
Books,  therefore,  it  is  desirable,  and  even  necessary  to 
deal  with  the  first  six  books  as  forming  a  single  group 
(the  Hexateuch),  rather  than  with  the  canonical  arrange¬ 
ment  into  a  group  of  five  (the  Pentateuch). 

But  the  other  historical  books  are  also  organically 
connected  with  the  narrative  part  of  the  Hexateuch. 
During  the  Babylonian  Exile  there  was  a  very  extensive 


12 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LITERATURE 


literary  activity,  one  of  the  most  important  results  of 
which  was  the  redaction  of  the  traditional  history  by  a 
school  of  Deuteronomic  editors.  The  outcome  was  an 
Exilic  Book  of  the  History  of  the  People  of  Israel, 
narrating  the  history  from  the  creation  of  the  world 
down  to  the  destruction  of  Jerusalem  by  Nebuchadnezzar 
(586  B.C.).  This  elaborate  work  contained  JE  +  D  of  the 
ilexateuch,  a  Deuteronomic  edition  of  Judges,  a  shorter 
form  of  our  present  Books  of  Samuel,  and  the  Books  of 
Kings,  in  substantially  their  present  form.  The  union 
of  P  with  JE  +  D  of  the  Hexateuch,  and  the  separation 
of  the  Pentateuch,  to  some  extent  disintegrated  the 
original  historical  narrative.  But  it  is  important  to 
realise  that  when  the  Pentateuch  was  thus  separated  oflF, 
and  recognised  as  authoritative  in  a  special  sense,  the 
books  which  make  up  ^  the  former  prophets  ’  were  already 
in  existence  in  a  form  identical  to  a  large  extent  with  the 
one  they  ultimately  assumed.  The  collection  of  the 
prophetic  writings  proper — ‘^the  latter  prophets’ — also 
goes  back  in  its  beginnings  certainly  to  the  Babylonian 
Exile.  The  study  of  prophecy  was,  during  this  period, 
pursued  with  great  eagerness  and  activity,  as  the  signi- 
hcant  appeals  of  the  prophets  of  the  Babylonian  Exile  to 
earlier  prophecy  clearly  indicate  {cf.  Ezek.  xxxviii.  17  ; 
Isa.  xl.  21,  xli.26,  xliv.  7,  etc  ;  and  especially  Zech.  i.  4, 
and  vii.  4,  where  ^the  former  prophets’  are  referred  to). 

But  the  prophetic  collection,  as  a  whole,  was  by  no 
means  definitely  fixed  in  the  fifth  century  b.c.  The 
Books  of  Joel  and  Jonah  belong  entirely  to  a  later  time, 
and  the  whole  collection  was  freely  edited  and  revised 
over  a  considerable  period.  Nor  did  it  until  much  later 
possess  an  authoritative  character  such  as  would  suffice 
to  place  it  beside  the  Law.  The  fact  that  the  Chronicler, 
c.  250b.c.,  could  revise  the  historical  books  (Samuel  and 
Kings),  and  restate  the  history  contained  in  them  from  a 
different  point  of  view,  shows  clearly  that  the  collection 
had  not  yet  attained  a  fully  authoritative  place.  This 
position  had  been  reached  by  the  time  when  Ecclesiasticus 
was  written  {cf.  ch.  44-50),  i.e.  c.  200  b.c.  ;  and  it  is 
significant  that  the  Book  of  Daniel,  the  composition  of 
which  falls  after  this  date  (165-164  b.c.),  did  not  find  a 
place  in  the  prophetic  collection  (nor  is  Daniel  mentioned 
by  Ben  Sira  in  his  list  of  prophets). 


THE  CANON  OF  THE  OLD  TESTAMENT  13 


(S)  The  Writings  (Hagiographa). — Here  again  there  can 
be  no  doubt  that,  when  the  prophetic  collection  had 
been  definitively  fixed  and  closed,  a  good  deal  of  the 
literature  which  is  now  included  in  the  third  collection 
of  Old  Testament  sacred  writings  was  already  in  exist¬ 
ence.  That  such  a  collection  was  already  beginning  to 
group  itself  may,  indeed,  be  inferred  from  the  Prologue 
to  Ecclesiasticus ;  but,  as  has  already  been  pointed  out, 
the  terms  there  employed  indicate  that  it  was  then  quite 
vague  and  undefined.  ^Outside  Law  and  Prophets  other 
writings  were  extant  which  were  regarded  as  holy,  and 
were  read  for  purposes  of  edification,  but  for  which 
clearly  no  special  class-name  had  at  that  time  been 
coined.’  ^ 

^V^e  have  already  seen  that  the  controversies  regarding 
the  delimitation  of  the  Canon  in  the  strict  sense  were  to 
all  intents  and  purposes  concentrated  on  the  question 
whether  certain  books  of  the  third  collection  should  he 
regarded  as  canonical  or  not.  The  question  of  canonicity 
practically  narrowed  itself  dowm  to  the  definition  of  the 
third  collection  ;  regarding  the  other  two  there  was 
substantially  no  dispute.  The  books  more  particularly 
called  in  question  were  Koheleth  and  Esther.  It  was 
natural  that  the  Psalms  should  form  the  starting-point 
of  the  third  collection.  The  Psalter,  which  is  the  most 
important  and  valuable  constituent  element  in  it,  could 
hardly  find  a  place  in  the  prophetic  collection ;  its 
peculiar  and  unique  character  made  such  a  course 
impossible.  No  part  of  Holy  Scripture  played  a  more 
important  part  in  the  devotional  life  of  the  Jewish 
community.  It  was  not  only  the  ‘hymn-hook  of  the 
Second  Temple,’  but  also,  to  a  large  extent,  its  prayer- 
book.  And  so  it  is  not  surprising  to  find  a  quotation 
from  it  (Ps.  Ixxix.  2-3)  already  cited  in  1.  Macc. 
vii.  17  as  word  of  Scripture.’  By  the  side  of  the 
Psalter  such  books  as  Job  and  Proverbs  would  naturally 
range  themselves.  The  principle  which  ultimately 
operated  to  define  canonical  limits,  the  theory,  viz.,  of 
the  prophetic  period  (from  Moses  to  Ezra),  sufficed  to 
secure  the  canonicity  of  the  remaining  books,  and  also  to 
exclude  so  orthodox  a  hook  as  Ecclesiasticus. 


1  Cornill,  op.  cit.  p.  477. 


14 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LITERATURE 


It  is  important  to  note  that  the  term  Tora  is  sometimes 
employed  to  denote  the  entire  Canon  (including  the  Prophets 
and  the  Writings).  This  usage  is  first  met  with  in  the  New 
Testament.  Thus  in  S.  John  x.  34,  Ps.  Ixxxii.  G  is  cited  as 
from  the  ‘  Law  ’ ;  ^  and  similarly  in  S.  John  xv.  25  (Ps.  xxxv.  19, 
Ixix.  5)  and  I.  Cor.  xiv.  21  (Isa.  xxviii.  11-12  cited).  This  usage 
has  its  roots  in  the  unique  position  assigned  to  the  Law  from  the 
first,  and  may  fairly  be  appealed  to  as  evidence  that  in  the  first 
instance  the  Law,  as  an  authoritative  collection,  stood  alone. 
The  ‘  Law  ’  and  the  ‘  material  ’  Canon  were  identical.  When  the 
‘Prophets’  later  became  a  fixed  collection  and  authoritative,  they 
were  placed  side  by  side  with  the  ‘Law,’  but  always  occupied  a 
position  subordinate  to  it.  The  work  of  the  prophets  was  con¬ 
ceived  of  as  essentially  an  enforcing  of  the  Divine  Law,  which 
was  eternally  valid.  Hence  the  prophetic  collection  could  be 
called  ‘tradition’  (Aram,  ^ashlemtd,  a  terra  applied  by  the 
Masoretes  to  the  prophetic  collection  only),  i.e.  the  historical 
enforcement  of  the  Law.  2  Just  as  Tord  is  sometimes  used  to 
denote  all  three  divisions  of  Old  Testament  Scripture,  so  also  is 
the  double  name  ‘  Law  and  Prophets  ’  (c/.  S.  IMatt.  v.  17,  vii.  12  ; 
S.  Luke  xvi.  16,  29,  31 ;  Acts  xxviii.  13).  Here  again  such  a 
nomenclature  points  to  a  time  when  the  two  collections  were 
alone  authoritative.  Apparently  the  sacred  Scriptures,  as  a  fixed 
collection  including  the  ''prophets  ’  (the  prophecies  of  Jeremiah 
are  referred  to),  are  alluded  to  in  Dan.  ix.  2  ( ‘  Daniel  understood 
in  the  books,’  i.e  the  Scriptures). 


1  Is  it  not  written  in  your  Law,  I  said :  ye  are  gods  ? 

2  The  Hebrew  term  for  ‘  tradition  ’  {kahbdld)  is  used  to  include 
both  the  prophets  and  the  writings. 


CHAPTER  II 


THE  TEXT  OF  THE  OLD  TESTAMENT 

Literature.— Axi\c\eB  :  Text  and  Versions  (by  Burkitt)  in  Encycl. 
Bibl. ;  Text  of  the  Old  Testament  (by  Strack)  in  Hastings’ 
D.B. ;  Introduction  to  Notes  on  the  Hebrew  Text  of  the 
Books  of  Samuel  (by  Driver) ;  Cornill,  Introdiiction  to  the 
Canonical  Books  of  the  Old  Testament  (E.T.),  ch.  xx. ;  T.  H. 
Weir,  A  Short  History  of  the  Hebrew  Text  of  the  Old 
Testament  (1899). 

The  Masoretic  (Hebrew)  Text. — The  canonical  text  of  the 
Old  Testament,  as  it  lies  before  us,  is  the  official  text 
which  was  finally  settled  by  the  labours  of  the  Masoretic 
scholars  in  the  seventh  to  the  ninth  centuries  a.d.  The 
masora  (from  the  Hebrew  word  rtiasar,  ^  to  hand  down 
traditionally ’)  is  the  technical  name  of  the  tradition  of 
the  text  which  had  been  handed  down  and  preserved 
especially  in  the  tradition  of  the  synagogue-worship. 

All  known  Hebrew  MSS.  contain  the  Masoretic 
Hebrew  text,  i.e.  the  text  as  fixed  by  the  Masoretes ; 
and  none  of  these  MSS.  is  of  any  great  age.  The  oldest 
that  can  certainly  be  dated  is  the  famous  St.  Petersburg 
Codex  which  bears  a  date  =  916  a.d. 

The  oldest  form  of  MS.  is  the  ‘  roll  ’  (Heb.  megilld).  Books 
were  originally  written  on  rolls  of  parchment  (or  leather,  in  the 
East),  and  in  the  synagogue-service,  which  is  very  conservative  in 
maintaining  ancient  usages,  the  lessons  from  the  Law  and  certain 
other  books  (the  ‘five  megilloth’)  are  still  read  from  rolls.  The 
text  is  written  in  short  columns  (across  the  width  of  the  roll) 
without  vowel-points  or  accents.  The  Pentateuch  occupies  one 
roll.  Each  of  the  ‘  five  megilloth  ’  (Canticles,  Ruth,  Lamenta¬ 
tions,  Koheleth,  and  Esther)  is  read  from  a  separate  roll, 

MSS',  in  book  form  (codices)  may  contain  the  whole  Bible,  or 
considerable  portions  of  it  (embracing  several  books).  They  are 

15 


16 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LITERATURE 


usually  written  on  parchment  or  paper,  and  are  provided,  as  a 
rule,  with  vowels  and  accents. 

Two  causes  have  operated  to  cause  the  disappearance  of  old 
Hebrew  MSS.  :  (a)  the  rule  that  all  MSS.  used  for  liturgical 
purposes,  if  damaged  in  any  way,  must  be  ‘  concealed  ’  or  ‘  hidden 
away’  (Heb.  ^ana«).  They  were  either  buried  beside  a  corpse, 
or  consigned  to  a  special  room  in  the  synagogue  (the  gentzd)  and 
there  allowed  to  moulder  away ;  (6)  a  considerable  number  of 
Bible  MSS.  (especially  Pentateuch  rolls)  were  destroyed  in  times 
of  persecution. 

It  has  already  been  stated  that  all  known  Hebrew 
MSS.  represent  a  single  variety  of  text^  that^  viz._,  of  the 
Masoretic  Recension.  This  recension  is  marked  by  a 
certain  number  of  peculiar  features — such  as  blank  spaces 
occurring  in  the  middle  of  a  verse,  e.g.  Gen.  xxxv.  22 
— which  show,  not  only  that  the  official  text  goes  back 
to  a  single  archetype,  but  that  the  faults  and  mistakes  of 
the  archetype  have  been  faithfully  copied  and  reproduced. 
However  faithfully  and  carefully  the  Masoretic  text 
has  been  handed  down,  it  is  clear  that  its  ultimate  value 
must  depend  upon  the  character  of  its  archetype.  A 
number  of  considerations  go  to  show  that  this  archetypal 
text  was  constituted  about  the  end  of  the  first  and  the 
beginning  of  the  second  centuries  after  Christ — the  very 
time  when  Judaism,  as  we  have  seen,  found  it  necessary, 
in  the  interests  of  self-preservation,  to  delimit  the  Canon. 
It  is  evident,  indeed,  that  the  rigid  definition  of  the 
Canon  must  necessarily  have  involved  the  fixing  of  the 
text. 

The  text  thus  constituted  (perhaps,  as  Lagarde  has 
suggested,  about  the  time  of  Hadrian)  was,  of  course,  a 
purely  consonantal  one.^  In  course  of  time  the  necessity 
of  indicating  the  vowel  sounds  became  more  and  more 
felt,  as  Hebrew  had  long  ceased  to  be  a  living  language, 
^and  only  prolonged  an  artificial  existence  as  the 
language  of  the  cultus  and  the  learned.’  ^  From  Jerome’s 
complaints  about  the  ambiguity  of  the  Hebrew  text,  it  is 
evident  that  in  his  time  no  complete  system  of  indicating 
the  vowel-signs  had  been  devised  ;  and  the  same  is  true 
of  the  Talmuds.  The  system  of  punctuation  by  means 
of  vowel-points  was  developed  later  by  the  Masoretic 

^  Only  the  long  vowels  or  diphthongs  were  marked  by  vowel- 
letters  (the  so-called  matres  lectionis). 

2  Cornill,  op.  cit.  p.  493. 


THE  TEXr  OF  THE  OLD  TESTAMENT  17 


scholars,  between  the  seventh  and  ninth  centuries.  This, 
the  one  familiar  to  us  in  the  printed  Hebrew  Bibles,  and 
the  most  elaborate,  is  the  so-called  system  of  ^Tiberias.’ 
But  a  number  of  old  MSS,  reproduce  another  system  of 
superlinear  vocalisation — the  so-called  Babylonian  ’ — 
which,  however,  is  not  so  perfectly  developed  or  so 
elaborate.  A  system  of  accentuation  was  also  developed 
at  the  same  time.  The  Masoretic  vowel-system,  how¬ 
ever,  embodies  a  traditional  pronunciation  which  is  much 
older  than  itself.  It  probably  represents  in  a  faithful 
way  the  pronunciation  current  when  the  text  was  fixed 
early  in  the  second  century. 

The  Criticism  of  the  Masoretic  Text. — A  text  constituted 
in  this  way,  at  the  earliest  towards  the  end  of  the 
first  century  a.d.,  is  obviously  far  removed  from  the 
autographs  of  the  original  Hebrew  writings,  and  had 
passed  through  a  long  previous  history.  One  momentous 
change,  that  must  have  affected  the  text  considerably, 
was  the  transition  from  the  old  form  of  Hebrew  script 
(retained  by  the  Samaritans)  to  the  so-called  ^square 
character’  or  ‘‘Assyrian  writing.’  Changes  of  spelling 
(especially  in  the  direction  of  extending  the  use  of  matres 
lectionis),  and  in  the  method  of  writing  the  text,  also  took 
place.  On  these  disturbing  factors  Cornill  {op.  cit. 
p.  490)  remarks  : — 

^The  history  of  the  writing  thus  furnishes  us  with  the 
following  result :  the  autographs  of  the  Biblical  authors 
were  written  on  leather  in  the  very  incompletely  de¬ 
veloped  old  Hebrew  writing  in  scriptio  continua,  with¬ 
out  any  division  of  words  and  sentences,  and  almost 
entirely  without  matres  lectionis.  The  text  underwent  a 
complete  change  in  the  kind  of  writing  employed  in  it, 
and  an  almost  complete  change  of  orthography ;  it  has 
thus  experienced  various  vicissitudes,  which  fact  leads  us 
to  suspect  that  it  has  not  come  off  without  suffering  a 
good  deal  of  misfortune.’ 

Other  factors  also  operated  in  earlier  times  to  modify 
the  text.  It  was  not  copied  with  the  minute  care  that 
was  lavished  upon  it  when  it  had  become  canonical ;  a 
large  amount  of  scribal  error  in  the  pre-Masoretic  text 
must,  therefore,  be  allowed  for.  A  number  of  unmis¬ 
takable  cases  of  this  kind  of  error  can  be  detected  by  a 
comparison  of  the  double  texts  that  occur,  such  as  II.  Sam. 

B 


18 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LITERATURE 

xxii.  =  Ps.  xviiiA  The  text  was  also  freely  edited  and 
glossed,  and  sometimes  appears  to  have  undergone  de¬ 
liberate  revision.  Jewish  tradition  itself  testifies  explicitly 
to  such  alterations  in  a  certain  limited  number  of  passages 
(18)— the  so-called  ^corrections  of  the  scribes’  {tikkune 
soferim) — and  the  internal  evidence  of  the  textual 
phenomena  indicates  many  others.  A  good  instance  of 
"tendency’  alteration,  dictated  by  dogmatic  considera¬ 
tions,  is  the  substitution  in  proper-  names  compounded 
with  Ba‘al  of  the  term  Imhcth  (  =  "shame’).  Thus 
'hhha‘al,  the  original  form  of  the  name,  became  later 
’Jshhosheth.  The  originally  innocent  designation  Ba^al 
had  become  in  later  times  olfensive  to  religious  feeling  ; 
am;!  it  became  necessary  to  eliminate  it.  Clear  cases  also 
occur,  both  in  the  accentuation  and  the  pointing,  where 
the  consonantal  text  has  been  made  to  bear  a  non-natural 
meaning  in  the  interests  of  a  particular — and,  in  many 
cases,  strained — exegesis. 

The  Science  of  Textual  Criticism  as  applied  to  the  Old 
Testament. — In  order  to  arrive  at  an  approximately 
original  form  of  text,  it  is  clear,  from  what  has  been 
said,  that  we  must  get  behind  the  Masoretic  Recension. 
To  accomplish  this  is  the  task  of  scientific  textual 
criticism. 

A  careful  examination  of  the  Masoretic  text  shows  that 
its  value  and  quality  are  not  uniform.  They  vary  largely 
ill  different  books,  or  parts  of  books.  On  the  whole,  the 
text  of  the  Pentateuch  has  been,  as  w'e  should  expect  to 
find,  most  carefully  preserved.  In  the  case  of  some  of 
the  other  liooks — e.g.  Ezekiel- -the  text  has  suffered 
much,  and  is  in  a  very  defective  condition.  \Phat  means 
exist  for  arriving  at  a  more  correct  form  ? 

(1)  Of  direct  external  evidence  —  apart  from  the 
Samaritan  text  of  the  Pentateuch — there  is  none,  for 
the  variants  yielded  by  Hebrew  MSS.  are  of  very  slight 
value,  and  are  practically  unimportant.  But  a  most 
valuable  indirect  aid  exists  in  the  Ancient  which 

often  represent  readings  in  particular  passages  which  are 
manifestly  superior  to  those  of  the  Masoretic  text.  ^  To 
recover  the  Hebrew  text  underlying  the  ancient  versions 
is,  therefore,  one  of  the  principal  tasks  of  Textual 

1  E.g.  (II.  Sam.  xxii.ll)  =  XT)  (Ps.  xviii.  11). 


THE  TEXT  OF  THE  OLI>  TESTAMENT  19 


Science.  The  most  valuable  of  the  versions  for  this 
jmrpose  is  the  LXX. 

(2)  There  is  also  the  internal  evidence  of  tlie  Hebrew 
text  itself.  Palpable  scribal  errors  can  often  be  corrected 
by  the  requirements  of  logical  consistency  and  sequence. 
The  law  of  parallelism,  which  is  a  dominant  feature  in  the 
structure  of  Hebrew  poetry^  and  aiso^  to  a  large  extent^ 
in  Hebrew  prose — especially  the  rhetorical  variety — is  a 
valuable  criterion  in  detecting  corruptions  in  the  text, 
and  also  often  in  suggesting  the  necessary  correction.^ 

(8)  The  employment  of  conjectural  emendation,  applied 
ill  accordance  with  philological  method,  is  an  indis¬ 
pensable  aid  to  criticism.  Here,  however,  a  considerable 
amount  of  caution  is  necessary,  as  well  as  tact,  a  fine 
judgment,  wide  knowledge,  and  exact  scholarship.  Be¬ 
fore  this  method  is  resorted  to  the  traditional  text  must 
be  carefully  weighed  and  tested,  and  the  evidence  of  the 
versions  carefully  studied  and  brought  to  bear.  Emenda¬ 
tions  which  are  based  upon  a  wide  survey  of  the  textual 
facts,  and  are  logically  deduced  from  them,  will  naturally 
be  more  likely  to  win  assent  than  mere  guesses,  how¬ 
ever  brilliant,  which  can  be  controlled  by  no  objective 
criterion. 

One  test  which  may  be  applied  to  this  form  of  textual 
criticism  is  to  note  how  far  proposed  emendations  have 
secured  the  assent  of  competent  critical  scholars.  Where 
a  particular  emendation  has  been  widely  accepted  it  is 
thereby  raised  considerably  in  the  scale  of  probability, 
and  should  be  regarded  as  on  a  different  level  from 
suggestions  which  fail  to  secure  any  adherents.  In 
cases,  too,  where  a  particular  emendation  has  been  pro¬ 
posed  independently  by  more  than  one  scholar,  the 
probable  correctness  of  the  conjecture  is  enhanced. 

The  Samaritan  Pentateuch  and  the  Ancient  Versions. — 
The  importance  of  the  external  aids  that  exist  for  arriving 
at  an  earlier  form  of  the  Hebrew  text  makes  it  necessary 
to  enumerate  these.  But  only  a  bare  enumeration  is 
possible  here  ;  fuller  details  must  be  sought  elsewhere. ‘"I 

(a)  The  Samaritan  Pentateuch. — The  Samaritans,  as  is 

1  Metrical  considerations  of  a  more  detailed  character  are  re¬ 
garded  by  some  modern  scholars  as  affording  a  valuable  means 
for  helping  to  emend  the  text. 

2  See  the  literature  cited  at  the  head  of  this  chapter. 


20 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LITERATURE 


well  known,  org-anisecl  tliemselves  as  a  religious  com¬ 
munity  on  an  independent  basis  some  not  very  long  time 
after  the  reforming  work  of  Ezra-Nehemiah  had  been 
carried  out.  They  claimed  to  he  the  true  adherents  and 
exponents  of  the  Mosaic  religion,  and  accepted  the  Penta¬ 
teuch  (but  no  other  books  besides)  as  authoritative 
Scripture.  They  may,  as  Cornill  suggests,  have  taken 
over  the  Pentateuch' some  time  in  the  fourth  century 
B.c.  The  text  of  the  Pentateuch  which  they  thus  took 
over  has  been  preserved  by  them  and  used  ever  since  in 
their  worship.  It  is  the  Hebrew  text  written  in  Samaritan 
characters  (which  are  practically  identical  with  the  old 
Hebrew  script).  ^  The  Samaritan  Pentateuch  thus  provides 
us  with  a  recension  of  the  text,  independent  of  the 
LXX.  and  belonging  to  the  time  shortly  after  its  definitive 
completion  and  close.’  ^  It  thus  approximates  to  the  text 
of  the  Pentateuch  as  it  existed  in  the  fourth  century  b.c. 
The  fact  that  it  coincides  substantially  with  the  Masoretic 
text,‘^  shows  that  the  Hebrew  text  of  the  Pentateuch 
has  i)een  preserved  with  special  care,  from  the  time  when 
it  was  compiled  in  its  present  form.  The  authoritative 
and  sacred  character  with  which  it  was  invested  from  the 
first  would  naturally  lead  to  such  a  result. 

(h)  The  Alexandrine  Translation  (the  LXX.). — By  far  the 
most  valuable  and  important  of  the  Old  Versions  is  the 
Alexandrine  translation  of  the  Old  Testament  known  as 
the  LXX.  This  translation  was  made  in  Alexandria  by 
different  hands  at  different  times,  and,  therefore,  is  of 
unequal  value  in  its  different  parts.  The  earliest  and 
most  carefully  executed  rendering  is  that  of  the  Penta¬ 
teuch,  which  was  made,  perhaps,  c.  250  b.c.  It  is  to 
this  translation  of  the  Pentateuch  that  the  famous  Metter 
of  Aristeas,’  containing  a  legendary  account  of  the 
circumstances  which  led  to  the  production  of  the  trans¬ 
lation  refers.  More  than  a  century  after  250  the  grand¬ 
son  of  Ben  Sira  in  the  Prologue  to  the  Greek  translation 
of  Ecclesiasticus  (written  c.  132  b.c.)  refers  to  Greek 
translations  of  ^  the  law  and  the  prophets  and  the  rest  of 

1  Cornill,  op.  cit.  p.  511. 

3  It  shows  some  6000  variants  as  compared  with  the  Masoretic 
text,  but  the  majority  of  these  are  of  comparatively  slight  import¬ 
ance.  Some  derive  special  weight  from  the  fact  that  the  LXX. 
agrees  with  them  against  the  Masoretic  text. 


THE  TEXT  OF  THE  OLD  TESTAMENT  21 


the  books,’  so  that  tlie  greater  part  of  the  Greek  Old 
Testament  was  apparently  already  in  existence  by  the 
second  half  of  the  second  century  b.c. 

The  LXX.  thus,  in  its  correct  text,  represents  a 
Hebrew  text  several  centuries  older  than  that  of  the 
Masoretic  Recension — and  more  than  a  thousand  years 
older  than  the  earliest  extant  Hebrew  MS.  This  fact 
makes  the  recovery  of  the  Hebrew  text  underlying-  it  a 
matter  of  urgent  importance.  But  the  problem  is  beset 
with  many  formidable  difficulties,  which  can  only  gradu¬ 
ally  be  overcome. 

The  text  of  the  LXX.  has  itself  suffered  considerably  in  the 
process  of  transmission — by  careless  transcription,  and  in  some 
cases  from  deliberate  ‘tendency’  alterations.  Special  revisions 
of  the  text  have  been  made,  and  distinct  types  of  text  have 
crystallised  themselves  in  special  recensions.  Three  such  made 
under  ecclesiastical  authority  at  the  end  of  the  third  and  begin¬ 
ning  of  the  fourth  centuries  are  referred  to  by  Jerome,  viz.  a 
Palestinian,  that  of  Hesychius,  and  that  of  Lucian.  The  last  has 
been  recognised  in  certain  MSS.,  and  partly  reconstructed  by 
Lagarde.  It  is  of  great  importance,  as  it  contains  a  number  of 
old  readings  which  have  disappeared  from  the  ordinary  LXX. 
text. 

The  divergences  between  the  old  Hebrew  text  followed  by  the 
LXX.  and  the  text  which  gradually  took  shape  and  gained 
authority  among  the  Palestinian  Jews  led  in  time  to  disputes, 
especially  as  the  LXX.  was  appealed  to  by  Christians  in  con¬ 
troversy  with  Jewish  opponents.  In  this  way  the  old  Greek 
version  gradually  fell  into  disrepute  in  Jewish  circles.  The 
^fixing  of  the  Canon  and  the  establishment  of  a  canonical  text 
made  the  provision  of  a  Greek  version  in  accord  with  the  latter  a 
necessity.  To  meet  this  the  slavishly  literal  translation  of 
Aquila  was  produced  ;  and  it  at  once  ‘  attained  canonical  authority 
in  the  eyes  of  all  [Jews]  who  did  not  understand  Hebrew.’  ^ 

The  first  task  before  critical  scholars  in  this  depart¬ 
ment  is,  therefore,  the  recovery  of  the  true  text  of  the 
LXX.  A  very  large  number  of  MSS.  exist  w'hich  have 
only  been  collated  in  an  imperfect  manner.  These  will 
have  to  be  examined  carefully  afresh,  family  groups  of 
text  classified,  and  the  whole  material  made  available  for 
critical  purposes. 

For  these  purposes  two  valuable  auxiliary  aids  exist 
in  the  citations  made  from  the  LXX.  in  patristic  writers, 
and,  above  all,  in  the  secondary  versions  made  from  the 

I  Cornill,  op.  cit.  p.  61(5. 


22 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LITERATURE 


LXX.  Patristic  citations  are  useful,  when  used  with 
discrimination,  especially  in  delimiting  families  of  texts. 
Versions  were  made  from  the  LXX.  in  order  to  provide 
non-Greek  speaking  Christians  with  translations  of  the 
Old  Testament  as  part  of  the  Scriptures  of  the  Church. 
The  oldest  of  these  is  the  Vetus  Latina,  which  was 
formed  in  the  second  century  a.d.  :  then  come  the  Coptic 
Versions,  the  Ethiopic,  the  Gothic,  and  the  Armenian. 
Critical  editions  of  these  will  be  of  great  service  in  fixing 
the  true  text  of  the  parent  LXX.  VVhen  all  these  means 
have  been  made  fully  available,  and  the  true  text  of  the 
LXX.  has  been  recovered,  it  will  be  possible,  perhaps,  to 
arrive  at  the  Hebrew  text  underlying  it.  Such  a 
Hebrew  text  would  be  of  inestimable  value  for  the 
criticism  of  the  received  Hebrew  text.  But  a  vast 
amount  of  work  has  yet  to  be  done  before  such  a  result 
can  be  attained.  Meanwhile,  however,  much  useful 
preliminary  work  is  being  accomplished,  and  it  is  possible 
to  use  the  LXX.,  even  in  its  present  imperfect  text,  with 
great  advantage  for  the  criticism  of  the  Biblical  Books, 
'riie  textual  work  of  such  scholars  as  Lagarde,  Well- 
hausen,  Merx,  Cornill,  Driver,  Ryssel,  Baethgen,  not 
to  speak  of  Duhm  and  Marti,^  have  shown  what  can  be 
accomplished  in  this  direction.  It  must  not  be  assumed 
from  what  has  been  said  that  there  is  any  reason  to 
suppose  that  the  Hebrew  text  underlying  the  LXX.  is 
superior,  as  a  whole,  to  the  Masoretic  Recension.  AVhile 
it  contains  many  old  readings  of  great  value,  yet  it  often 
exhibits  a  text  markedly  inferior  to  the  Hebrew  one. 
It  is  in  correcting  the  latter  in  detail  that  its  real  value 
lies. 

(c)  The  other  Ancient  Versions  must  be  dismissed  more 
briefly.  These  are  the  Targmns  or  Aramaic  transla¬ 
tions  of  the  Old  Testament  which  were  originally  made 
to  render  the  lections  read  in  the  synagogue  intelligible 
to  the  people  when  Hebrew  had  ceased  to  be  their 
mother-tongue.  Targums  exist  to  all  the  canonical 
books  of  the  Old  Testament  except  to  Daniel  and  Ezra- 
Nehemiah  :  often  in  more  than  one  form.  Both  for  the 
Pentateuch  and  the  Prophets  there  is  a  Babylonian  as 
well  as  a  Jerusalem  Targum.  The  most  important 

1  This  list  is,  of  course,  by  no  means  exhaustive. 


THE  TEXT  OF  THE  OLD  TESTAMENT  28 

representatives  of  tliis  class  of  translation  are  the  lar- 
gum  of  Onkelos  on  the  Pentateuch,  and  the  Targum  of 
the  Prophets,  which  is  ascribed  to  Jonathan  b.  Uzziel,  a 
pupil  of  the  famous  Hillel.  Onkelos  is  fairly  literal ; 
the  Targum  of  Jonathan  is  much  freer  and  more  para¬ 
phrastic  in  its  renderings.  Both  appear  to  have  been 
of  Palestinian  origin,  but  were  finally  revised  in  Baby¬ 
lonia.  Besides  the  above  there  is  a  Jerusalem  Targum 
to  the  Pentateuch,  which  is  extant;  and  one  of  the 
Prophets  which  is  known  only  from  occasional  citations. 
The^  Targums  have  some  value  for  textual  criticism,  but 
the  use  of  them  for  this  purpose,  owing  to  their  para¬ 
phrastic  character,  requires  special  care  and  knowledge. 
The  Hebrew  text  of  the  Biblical  books  underlying  it 
goes  back  to  an  early  (pre-Masoretic)  period. 

Another  ancient  version  is  the  Old  Syriac,  known  as 
the  Peshitto.  This  is  of  Christian  origin,  and  the  Old 
Testament  rendering  was  made  (from  the  Hebrew  text) 
in  conjunction  with  the  New  Testament.  _  For  text- 
critical  purposes  the  Syriac  Old  Testament  is  not  of  the 
highest  value,  as  the  translation  has  been  subjected  to 
various  modifying  influences,  especially  that  of  the  LXX. 
Lastly,  there  is  Jerome’s  new  Latin  translation  of  the 
Old  Testament  from  the  Ilebraica  veritas,  begun  about 
e392  A.  D.  with  the  Book  of  Kings  (to  which  is  prefixed 
the  famous  ^Prologus  galeatus’),  and  finished  about  the 
year  405  with  the  Psalter. 

Some  Examples  of  applied  Textual  Criticism.— One  or 
two  examples  will,  perhaps,  help  the  reader  to^  undei- 
stand  more  easily  how  the  means  for  coriecting  the 
Hebrew  text  which  have  been  described  above  can  be 
utilised  for  the  purposes  of  textual  criticism. 

(a)  Corrupt  passages  of  the  Hebrew  text  corrected  by 
the  aid  of  the  Versions. 

I.  Sam.  xiv.  16.— mnCH  mnit  Here  the 
last  two  words  of  the  Hebrew  are  untranslatable  (liter¬ 
ally  the  sentence  runs :  '  And  behold  the  camp^ 
away  and  went  and  here  ’) :  the  LXX.  has^  koi  idov  tj 
TTapey^oXT}  Ttrapayyivt]  evOev  koI  evOev.  Ihis  yields  a 
thoroughly  satisfactory  sense,  and  we  are  enabled 

to  restore  for  the  corrupt  and  render :  ^  And 
behold  the  camp  melted  away  hither  and  thither,’ 


24 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LITERATURE 


Isaiah  xlvii.  3  h.  4  : — 

:  Dnx  y-ias  hdr  dp:  3  I, 

T  T  ;  V  TT 

:  mp  nin*’  4. 

A,V.  8  b.  I  will  take  vengeance,  and  I  will  not  meet  thee 
\i.e.  the  Virgin  daughter  of  Babylon]  as  a  man. 

4.  As  for  onr  Redeemer,  the  Lord  of  hosts  is  His  name, 
etc. 

The  Hebrew  text  liere  cannot  be  right ;  for  (a)  v.  4 
interrupts  the  sequence  of  the  poem,  in  which  Jahveh  is 
the  speaker  ;  {b)  the  words  rendered,  I  will  not  meet  thee 
as  a  man,  are  highly  uncertain  in  meaning,  and,  how¬ 
ever  translated,  cannot  be  said  to  yield  a  sense  suitable 
to  the  context ;  (c)  the  lines  violate  the  well-defined 
rhythmical  structure  which  marks  the  rest  of  the  context 
(where  the  Kina  rhythm  prevails).  These  difficulties  are 
solved  by  reading  with  some  MSS.  of  the  LXX.  for 
DTR  says  ^  for  ^  man  ’)  ^ :  the  difficult  word  can 

now  be  made  to  yield  a  suitable  sense,  by  being  treated  as 
a  nif  tolerativum.  Thus  the  following  perfectly  sym¬ 
metrical  lines  result : — 

“idR  npR  dpj 

:  mp  nbi' 

I  will  take  vengeance  and  not  be  entreated — says  our 
Redeemer ; 

Jahveh  Sabaoth  is  His  name — the  Holy  One  of  Israel. 

I.  Sam.  xiv.  21. — Here  the  words  nvn!?  ndH  d'dD 
are  awkward  and  difficult  in  the  Masoretic  text.  With 
the  preceding  sentence  they  may  be  rendered  thus  : 
the  Hebrews  had  been  to  the  Philistines  as  aforetime,  in  that 
they  went  up  with  them  to  the  camp']  round  about ;  but  they 
were  for  being  \with  Israel],  The  LXX.  and  Vulgate,  how¬ 
ever,  have  e7re(TTpdcf}r]o-av  /cat  avrol,  reversi  sunt  ut  essent 
respectively,  i.e.  Di  This  reading  at  once 

solves  all  difficulties  :  [Voiij  the  Hebrews,  who  were  to  the 
Philistines  as  before,]  they  also  turned  \to  be  with  Israel], 
i.e.  deserted  to  Israel. 

Amos  i.  11.— nvj  IDR  ivh  PI-ID'’’).  And 

T  T  : 

1  Involving  the  transposition  of  two  letters  and  the  confusion 
of  n  and 


THE  TEXT  OF  THE  OLD  TESTAMENT  25 


his  anger  did  tear  perpetually  and  he  kept  his  wrath  for  ever. 
Here  the  Pesliitto  and  Vulgate  give  'And  he  retained 
his  anger  perpetually/  reading  for  (one  letter 

less).  This  is  strongly  supported  by  the  parallelism 
(retained  anger .  .  .  kept  wrath),  and  is  undoubtedly  right. 
(5)  As  examples  of  felicitous  conjectural  emendation 

the  following  may  he  cited  ; — 

Judges  xi.  37. — (Of  Jeptliah’s  daughter) :  [Let  me  alone 
two  months]  that  I  may  depart  and  go  down  upon  the 

mountains  (D'-inn-^y  TlTlM  Kohertson  Smith 

reading  for  obtains  the  excellent  sense: 

that  I  may  go  and  wander  at  large  on  the  mountains.  Ihe 
incongruity  of  the  received  Hebrew  text  is  obvious. 

An  interesting  case  of  a  conjectural  emendation  being 
afterwards  confirmed  by  positive  evidence  is  11.  Kings 
XV.  10:  [And  Shallum  the  son  of  Jabesh  conspired  against 

him,  and  smote  hirri]  before  the  people  DP  (So  11. V. 

following  Peshitto,  Targum^  V ulgate).  But  there  are  grave 
philological  objections  to  the  correctness  of  this  expres¬ 
sion  :  bp  is  Aramaic^  and  the  article  would  at  least  be 
required  with  DP  to  make  the  translation  a  justifiable 
one.  Moreover,  the  sense  yielded  is  not  a  suitable  one. 
Several  scholars,  sensible  of  these  objections,  and  feeling 
that  the  context  required  a  place-name,  conjectured 


DVb'’lIl  'in  Ibleam’ ;  this  conjecture  was  later  brilliantly 

confirmed  by  the  Lucianic  Recension  which  has  the 
reading  h  Te/3Xadg. 

(c)  Sometimes  corruption  of  the  text  appears  to  have 
taken  place  at  a  comparatively  early  period,  and  is 
already  present  in  the  Hebrew  text  underlying  the 
Ancient  Versions.  Modern  critical  scholarship  has  not 
hesitated  to  deal  with  such  textual  problems  by  the 
method  of  conjectural  emendation.  Such  attempts  have, 
of  course,  to  be  judged  on  their  merits.  A  certain 
subjective  element  must  necessarily  be  present  in  the 
results  so  obtained.  Nevertheless,  where  a  particular 
passage  is  by  general  consent  thoroughly  corrupt  and  a 
certain  solution  (by  conjectural  emendation)  has  com¬ 
mended  itself  to  a  number  of  critical  scholars,  the  lesuits 


26 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LITERATURE 


so  attained  have  a  certain  claim  to  be  considered  pro¬ 
bable.  In  any  case  where  a  number  of  scholars  have 
worked  on  the  text  of  a  passage  we  may  expect  to  find 
the  lines  of  the  true  solution  suggested.  An  approxima¬ 
tion  to  the  true  text  may  be  reached  in  this  way,  even 
though  details  may  remain  uncertain. 

Perhaps  the  following  example  will  help  to  make  these  points 
clear. 

One  of  several  very  difficult  passages  in  Isa.  xxiii.  (the  oracle 
on  Tyre)  is  ver.  10.  This  runs  in  the  Masoretic  text : 

nny 

:  liy  nrp 

i.e.  Pass  through  thy  land  as  the  Nile,  O  Daughter  of  Tarshish : 
there  is  no  girdle  (  =  ?  restraining  power  about  thee)  anymore. 
This  is  supposed  to  mean  that  ‘  the  people  of  Tarshish  are  now 
as  free  of  the  land  they  live  in  as  the  Nile  is  of  Egypt’  (Skinner): 
i.e.  the  ruin  of  Tyre  leaves  her  colony  (Tarshish)  without  the 
restraints  hitherto  imposed  upon  it.  But,  as  Skinner  [ad  loc.) 
remarks :  ‘  Nowhere  else  is  a  man  represented  as  hampered  by 
his  own  girdle  ;  the  removal  of  it  is  rather  a  synonym  for  weak¬ 
ness.’  The  LXX.  render :  till  ('7?^  for  thine  oion  land ; 

for  indeed  no  longer  come  ships  from  Tarshish.  On  this  White- 
house  remarks :  ^  ‘  The  LXX.  in  their  rendering  show  that  the 
text  is  corrupt.  The  word  for  Nile  is  absent  from  their  text,  and 
is  evidently  due  to  dittography  of  the  original  Hebrew  ending  of 
the  word  for  pass  ('“13P)  and  the  first  two  characters  of  the  word 
for  land.^  He,  therefore,  omits  as  the  Nile  (“li^'^),  and,  adopt¬ 
ing  Duhm’s  suggestion  to  read  harbour  (THD)  for  girdle  (nTD)> 
translates : 

Cultivate  thy  land,  0  daughter  of  Tarshish — the  harbour  is  no 
more ! 

‘Mercantile  enterprise  is  destroyed,  and  the  only  resource  for 
the  inhabitants  of  Tarshish  is  to  abandon  trade  for  agriculture.’ 
The  LXX.  rendering  certainly  suggests  that  the  words  as  the 
Nile  (“IN'ID)  and  girdle  (PIPD)  are  uncertain but  the  con’uption 
is  evidently  older  than  the  LXX. 

Cheyne  (N.i^.O..?’.)  proi^oses  to  read : 

:  niy  THD  PR  nvjR  "li'D  p“iR  '-iny 

i.e.  Pass  over  to  the  land  of  Egypt,  ye  ships  of  Tarshish;  there  is 
no  haven  any  more. 


1  Isaiah  (in  ‘  Century  ’  Bible  Series),  p.  263. 

2  They  may  have  read  them  and  HID  respectively. 


THE  TEXT  OF  THE  OLD  TESTAMENT  27 


The  Masoretic  text  arose  thus.  '3  is  often 

corrupted  from  ^  and  there  are  cases  of  arising  from  V  • 

hence  IS'D  from  “lV?0 :  after  this  corruption  had  taken  place 

the  final  T  of  “1^“!^^  arose  by  dittography.  , 

The  most  thorough  textual  treatment  of  the  passage  is  Duhm  s. 
Duhm  transfers  the  two  opening  words  (which  he  reads  as 
to  the  close  of  ver.  9  (in  place  of 

The  remaining  consonants  of  the  second,  third,  and  fourth 
words  are  ni  D  :  last  four  of  these  were  read  by  the 

LXX.,  he  thinks,  as  {TrXoia).  So  it  is  possible  to  emend  : 

n2  Weep,  O  fieet  of  the  daughter  of  Tarshish 

or  W’'{^“in  123-  Weep,  0  ships  of  Tarshish  [of  ver.  1). 

The  following  clause  he  renders,  as  already  stated  :  Ihere  ts  no 

haven  any  more.  ,  ^  i. 

It  must  be  admitted  that  the  restored  text. 


Weep,  0  ships  of  Tarshish— there  is  no  haven  any  more, 
yields  a  fine  opening  line  for  the  stanza,  sdmirable  both  in 
rhythm  and  sense. 


PART  I1.—8PECTAL  INTRODUCTION 


We  now  pass  to  the  consideration  of  the  individual 
Books^  which  make  up  the  collection  of  sacred  Scripture, 
on  their  literary  side.  Here  our  investigation  will  be 
concerned  with  such  questions  as  the  contents,  age, 
composition,  and  authorship  of  the  hooks  in  question 
(  =  t}ie  so-called  ^Higher  Criticism’). 

If  a  purely  historical  method  of  treatment  were  adopted 
it  would  be  necessary  to  trace  the  development  of  the 
literature  from  its  beginnings,  and  follow  its  successive 
stages  through  the  individual  books,  many  of  which  are 
of  highly  composite  structure.  But  the  practical  incon¬ 
venience  of  such  a  course  is  obvious.  It  would  involve 
the  violent  disintegration  of  many  books  of  the  Bible,  and 
would  necessitate  the  distribution  of  their  various  parts 
over  the  different  periods  of  Hebrew  literature.  The 
literary  relation  and  affinities  of  the  books  cannot,  of 
course,  be  ignored.  But  it  will  be  best  to  combine  the 
discussion  of  these  with  the  treatment  of  the  hooks  as 
units.  It  will  not  be  possible,  however,  to  adhere 
strictly  to  the  order  and  divisions  of  the  Hebrew  Canon 
in  this  treatment,  but  will  be  necessary  to  group  the 
books  in  accordance  with  their  general  literary  character 
and  subject  matter  into  : — 

A.  The  Legislative  and  Historical  Books  {i\\Q  Hexateuch, 

Judges,  Samuel,  Kings,  Chronicles,  Ezra-Nehe- 
miah). 

B.  The  Prophetic  Literature  (Isaiah,  Jeremiah,  Ezekiel, 

the  twelve  minor  Prophets). 

C.  Poetical  and  Didactic  Books  (including  didactic 

historical  books):  Psalms,  Job,  Proverbs,  tlie  five 
Megilloth,  and 

D.  Apocalyptic  Literature  (the  Book  of  Daniel) 


SPECIAL  INTRODUCTION 


29 


A.  THE  LEGISLATIVE  AND  HISTORICAL  BOOKS. 

Attention  lias  already  been  called  to  the  fact  that  a 
comprehensive  historical  work  was  compiled  during  the 
exile  hy  a  school  of  Deuteronomic  writers  which  sur¬ 
veyed  the  entire  history  from  the  Creation  down  to  the 
destruction  of  Jerusalem,  and  including  a  notice  of  the 
release  of  King  Jehoiachin  from  imprisonment  in  562 
B.c.  This  work  was  essentially  a  compilation,  embodying 
large  excerpts  from  earlier  sources,  which  have  been 
fitted  together  in  an  editorial  framework.  The  work 
thus  compiled  consisted  of  the  narrative  part  of  the 
Ilexateuch  which  belongs  to  the  document  known  as  JE, 
together  with  a  form  of  Deuteronomy,  and  the  greater 
part  of  the  Books  of  Judges,  Samuel,  and  Kings,  as  we 
know  them.  Another  comprehensive  work  was  compiled 
later  by  the  Chronicler  (about  250  b.c.),  which  surveyed 
the  entire  history,  from  a  different  point  of  view,  from 
Adam  to  Nehemiah’s  second  visit  to  Jerusalem  in  432 
B.c.  This  is  comprised  in  the  Books  of  Chronicles  and 
?>zra-Nehemiah.  Like  the  former  work,  it  is  largely  a 
compilation,  resting  upon  earlier  material ;  but  the  re¬ 
writing  is  much  more  considerable,  the  hand  of  the  com¬ 
piler  being  much  more  in  evidence.  In  much  the  same 
way  the  Pentateuch  and  the  Book  of  Joshua  have  been 
compiled  from  earlier  materials  (partly  identical  with 
some  of  the  sources  included  in  the  exilic  (Deuteronomic) 
book  of  history).  As  one  of  the  documentary  sources 
which  enter  into  the  former  work  is  peculiar  to  it,  and 
extends  not  only  through  the  Pentateuch  but  also  into 
Joshua,  viz.  the  so-called  Priestly  Code  (P),  we  are 
justified  in  treating  these  books  as  a  well-defined  group 
which  is  clearly  distinguishable  from  the  Books  of  Judges, 
Samuel,  Kings,  and  Chronicles.  Our  first  chapter  will, 
therefore,  be  devoted  to  the  consideration  of  the 
Hexateuch. 


CHAPTER  I.— THE  HEXATEUCH 

(PENTATEUCII  AND  JOSHUa) 


Literature. — The  articles  Hexateuch,  in  Hastings’  D.B.  and  the 
Encycl.  Bibl. ;  Pentateuch  in  Encycl.  Brit.  (9th  ed.);  R. 
Kittel,  History  of  the  Hebrews  (E.T,),  vol.  i.  §§5-10  (1895) ; 
Robertson  Smith,  O.T.J.C."^,  Lectures  xi-xiii.  (1892);  J.  E. 
Carpenter  and  G.  H.  Battersby,  The  Hexateuch,  2  vols. 
(1900) ;  J.  E.  Carpenter,  The  Composition  of  the  Hexateuch 
(1902) ;  The  Hexateuch,  by  A.  Kuenen  (translated  by  P.  H. 
Wicksteed)  (1886) ;  An  Introduction  to  the  Pentateuch,  by 
A.  T.  Chapman  (‘  Cambridge  Bible,’  1911). 

Commentaries.  —  (Containing  introductions  dealing  with  the 
sources  of  the  Hexateuch) ;  S.  R.  Driver,  Genesis  (1903) ; 
A.  H.  M'Neile,  Exodus  (1908)  (both  in  the  ‘Westminster 
Commentaries’);  Genesis  (I.C.C.),  by  J.  Skinner  (1910); 
S.  R.  Driver,  Exodus  (‘Cambridge  Bible,’  1911);  H.  G. 
IMitchell,  The  World  before  Abraham  [on  Gen.  i.-xi.,  with  a 
njost  useful  popular  introduction  on  the  Pentateuch)  (1901) ; 
G.  B.  Gray,  iVtm?)crs  (‘ Internat.  Crit.  Comm.’)  (1903) ;  S.  R. 
Driver,  Deuteronomy  (same  series)  (1895);  A.  H.  M‘Neile, 
Numbers  (‘Cambridge  Bible,’  1911). 

The  Pentateuch  in  general. — ITlien  the  compilation  of 
the  Pentateuch  was  first  completed  it  was  re^^arded  as  a 
.single  work,  and  is  so  referred  to  in  the  earliest  notices 
that  occur  of  it.  Thus  mention  is  made  of  it  by  the 
Chronicler  (in  passages  which  are  directly  his  own  com¬ 
position)  as  the  Lam,  the  Book  of  Moses  (II.  Chron.  xxv.  4)^ 
and  the  Book  of  Moses  alone  (II.  Chron.  xxxv.  12  f.).  In 
these  passages  the  Chronicler  is  undoubtedly  citing  from 
the  complete  Pentateuch,  of  which,  it  is  worth  noting, 
Moses  is  already  regarded  as  the  traditional  author.  In 
the  late  Psalm  i.  (ver.  2)  "  His  Law’  certainly  presupposes 
the  Pentateuch,  and  perhaps  the  prophetical  collection 
of  Holy  Scripture  as  well  {<f.  also  Ps.  cxix.,  which  is  a 
meditation  on  the  blessedness  of  keeping  the  Tora  in  this 
sense). ^  When  the  completed  Tora  was  first  divided 

1  Probably  the  Priestly  Code  (not  the  entire  Pentateuch)  is 
meant  by  the  Law  and  the  Book  of  the  Laiv  (Neh.  viii.  2  f.)  the 
Book  of  the  Law  of  Jahveh  (Neb.  ix.  3),  the  Book  of  the  Law  of 
30 


THE  HEXATEUCH  8J 

into  separate  books  is  not  certainly  known.  The  division 
is  at  any  rate  older  than  the  LXX. 

The  Tora,  in  spite  of  its  division  into  five  books,  has  always 
continued  to  be  regarded  as  essentially  a  single  work.  To  this 
work  Genesis  may  be  considered  as  introduction,  and  Deutero¬ 
nomy  as  conclusion.  The  entire  work  has  always  been  designated 
the  Lain  (Heb.  ha-t6rd)  par  excellence.  In  the  New  Testament 
it  is  referred  to  as  the  Book  of  the  Law  (Gal.  iii.  10),  the  Book  of 
Moses  (Mark  xii.  26),  the  Law  of  the  Lord  {i.e.  Jahveh)  Luke  ii. 
23),  the  Law  of  Moses  (Luke  ii.  20),  the  Law  (Matt.  xii.  5),  and, 
simply,  Moses  (Luke  xvi.  29).  Tbe  term  Tord  does  not  strictly 
mean  laio.  The  word  itself  means  originally  direction,  especially 
of  an  authoritative  kind  :  and  then  teaching.  It  was  in  the  first 
place  applied  to  oral  decisions  given  by  the  priests,  especially  in 
ritual  matters ;  also  to  moral  instruction  imparted  by  them  (c/. 
Hos.  iv.  6).  But  the  word  was  not  confined  in  its  application  to 
the  priest,  as  the  interpreter  of  Jahveh’s  will.  ‘The  prophet  not 
only  rebukes  the  sins  which  have  been  or  are  being  committed,  but 
jioints  what  ought  to  be  done  ;  so  that  his  preaching  likewise 
may  be  called  ‘tora  of  Jahveh.’ ^  In  Isa.  xlii.  4  lord  is  applied 
to  the  preaching  of  the  Servant  of  Jahveh.  Later  the  term 
acquired  a  special  meaning  as  being  aj^plied  to  the  book  in  which 
the  authoritative  teaching  or  direction,  which  was  regarded  as 
having  come  from  God  through  Moses,  was  embodied.  The  word 
tord  thus  possesses  a  wider  connotation  than  Law  {uo/xos).  ‘The 
legalistic  element,  which  might  rightly  be  called  the  Law,  re¬ 
presents  only  one  side  of  the  Tora.  To  the  Jew  Tora  means  a 
teaching  or  instruction  of  any  kind.  It  may  be  either  a  general 
principle  or  a  detailed  injunction,  whether  it  be  forind  in  the 
Pentateuch,  or  in  other  parts  of  the  Scripture — or  even  outside 
the  Canon. ’2 

We  are  here  concerned,  primarily,  with  the  term  as  ajjplied  to 
the  Pentateuch,  which  is  pre-eminently  the  Tord.  But  it  is  well 
that  the  larger  meaning,  which  has  never  been  absent  from  Jewish 
usage,  should  not  be  lost  sight  of. 

Both  Jewish  and  Christian  tradition  are  unanimous 
in  regarding  Moses  as  the  author  of  the  Pentateuch^ — a 

God  (Neh.  viii.  18),  and  the  Book  of  the  Tmw  of  Moses  (Neh.  viii.  1), 
which  was  read  by  Ezra  before  the  people.  The  Deuteronomio 
Book  found  by  Hilkiah  is  referred  to  as  the  Book  of  the  Law  and 
the  Tmw  in  II.  Chron.  xxxiv.  15,  19. 

1  Kuenen,  Hexateuch  (E.T.),  p.  178. 

2  Schechter  in  J.Q.R.,  viii.  (1896),  p.  2  f. 

^  According  to  one  form  of  the  Jewish  tradition,  Moses  wrote 
the  entire  Pentateuch — the  last  eight  verses  of  Deuteronomy, 
(recording  his  own  death  and  burial)  ‘with  tears.’  Another 
form  of  the  tradition  makes  these  verses  an  addition,  and  ascribes 
them  to  Joshua. 


32 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LITERATURE 


belief  which  was  apparently  shared  by  the  Chronicler,  c. 
250  B.c.  (11.  Chron.  xxv.  4,  xxxv.  12  f.).  As  has  already 
been  pointed  out,  by  the  Book  of  the  Law  of  Moses  referred 
to  in  Neh.  viii.  1  is  probably  meant  the  Priestly  Code 
of  the  Pentateuch  (not  the  entire  Pentateuch). 

At  first  sight  Neh.  xiii.  1  may  seem  to  negative  this  view.  The 
passage  runs :  ‘  On  that  day  they  read  in  the  Book  of  Moses  .  .  . 
and  therein  was  found  written  that  an  Ammonite  and  a  Moabite 
should  not  enter  into  the  assembly  of  God  for  ever.’  The  prohi¬ 
bition  referred  to  occurs  in  the  Pentateuch  in  Deut.  xxiii.  3-6 
(and  therefore  not  in  P).  But  it  is  to  be  observed  that  this 
section  of  Nehemiah  does  not  come  directly  from  the  memoirs 
(Nehemiah  is  spoken  of  in  the  third  person  just  before) ;  it,  there¬ 
fore,  probably  owes  its  present  form  to  the  compiler.  We  have 
already  seen  that  the  Book  of  Moses  is  a  descriptive  term 
applied  by  the  Chronicler  to  the  Pentateuch  as  a  whole.  If  he 
wrote  the  present  passage  he  would  naturally  describe  a  quotation 
from  Deuteronomy  as  from  the  Book  of  Moses  {i.e.  the  entire 
Pentateuch).  But  this  proves  nothing  regarding  earlier  usage. 

It  is  easy  to  see  how  the  belief  in  the  Mosaic  author¬ 
ship  of  the  Pentateuch  as  a  whole  would  grow  up. 
^Nevertheless’ — to  use  Cornill’s  words — Mt  is  entirely 
without  confirmation  in  the  Pentateuch  itself.  Neither 
by  way  of  superscription,  nor  of  introduction,  nor  other¬ 
wise,  does  the  work  itself  claim  to  have  been  wn-itten  by 
Moses.’ ^  Moses  is  referred  to  throughout  in  the  third 
person.  The  fact  that  certain  particular  passages  claim 
to  have  been  written  by  him — viz.  the  sentence  of  exter¬ 
mination  on  Amalek  (Ex.  xxiv.  4),  the  so-called  second 
Decalogue’  (Ex.  xxxiv.  27),  the  itinerary  (Numb,  xxxii. 
2),  and  the  M)ook  of  the  law’  {i.e.  a  legal  code  embodied 
in  Deuteronomy)  mentioned  several  times  in  Deutero¬ 
nomy — rather  suggests  that  these  passages  are  distin¬ 
guished  from  the  rest  by  having  been  embodied  in  writing 
by  Moses.  In  other  words,  the  older  tradition,  embodied 
in  the  Pentateuch,  expressly  distinguishes  certain  specified 
passages,  which  it  believes  to  have  been  set  forth  in 
written  form  by  Moses  himself  from  the  rest  of  the 
Pentateuch. 

A  number  of  other  indications,  quite  on  the  surface, 
make  the  authorship  of  the  complete  work  by  Moses  or 
a  contemporary  quite  impossible.  Such  are,  e.g.,  the  use 

1  Op.  cit.  p.  34. 


THE  HEXATEUCH 


33 


of  expressions  like  the  Canaanite  was  then  in  the  land 
(Gen.  xii.  6,  cf.  xiii.  7).  In  Gen.  xiv.  14  it  is  stated  that 
Abraham  pursued  .  .  .  as  far  as  Dan\  but  Ban  as  a 
local  name^  meaning  the  town  so  called,  only  became 
current  at  a  later  time  (Judg.  xviii.  29).  In  Gen. 
xxii.  14  there  is  an  allusion,  probably,  to  the  sacred 
character  of  Mount  Moriah  as  the  site  of  the  Temple. 
Again,  such  a  reference  as  that  contained  in  Gen.  xxxvi. 
21  before  there  reigned  any  king  over  the  children  of 
Israel’)  is  incompatible  with  Mosaic  authorship,  as  also 
is  the  citation  in  Numb.  xxi.  14  of  a  Book  of  the  Wars  of 
Jahvehas  ‘^authority  for  matters  which  must  have  been 
perfectly  familiar  to  every  contemporary  of  Moses. 
The  larger  part  of  the  legislation  embodied  in  the  Penta¬ 
teuch  presupposes  a  settled  agricultural  community 
which  can  only  have  come  into  existence  some  consider¬ 
able  time  after  the  age  of  Moses. 

The  Critical  Analysis  of  the  Pentateuch.— Obvious  as 
such  considerations  are,  the  traditional  ascription  of  the 
authorship  of  the  entire  work  to  Moses  came  down 
practically  unchallenged  till  the  seventeenth  century. 

I  hen,  for  the  first  time,  the  conclusion  was  drawn  in  a 
work  published  1655  by  Peyrerius  (died  1676),  and  after¬ 
wards  developed  by  Spinoza  (died  1677)  in  his  famous 
Tractatus  Theologico-politicus  (1670),  that  the  Pentateuch 
cannot  be  regarded  as  a  single  work,  the  coherent  pro¬ 
duct  of  a  single  author  at  all.  The  presence  of  double 
narratives  containing  incompatible  features  (like  the  two 
accounts  of  creation  in  Gen.  i.  and  ii.),  dates  and  time- 
specifications  which  are  mutually  exclusive  or  contra¬ 
dictory,  were  noted  in  this  connection  by  Peyrerius,  who 
possessed  a  lively  sense  of  the  mass  of  heterogeneous 
elements  of  which  the  Pentateuchal  literature  was  com- 

1  Cornill,  op,  cit.  p.  35.  Other  phenomena  of  similar  signifi¬ 
cance  are  the  description  of  Canaan  as  the  land  of  the  Hebrews', 
the  allusion  to  the  extermination  of  the  Canaanites  by  Israel 
(Lev.  xviii.  24-27 ;  Deut,  ii.  12) ;  the  designation  of  the  region 
E.  of  the  Jordan  as  fteyond  {on  the  other  side  of)  Jordan  {i.e.  from 
the  point  of  view  of  the  settled  community  after  the  conquest) 
(Deut.  i.  1  and  seven  times  again).  Cf.  also  the  phrase  unto  this 
day  (Deut.  iii.  14,  etc.),  which  implies  a  much  later  time  than 
that  of  the  events  recorded.  In  Ex.  xvi.  35  reference  is  made  to 
an  event  (the  ceasing  of  the  manna)  which,  according  to  Josh. 

V.  12,  only  took  place  after  Moses’  death. 


C 


34 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LITERATURE 


posed.  The  problem  thus  indicated — the  critical  analysis, 
viz.,  of  the  elements  which  make  up  the  Pentateuch, 
the  determination  of  their  character  and  mutual  relation¬ 
ship,  and  the  reconstruction  of  the  stages  by  which 
the  Pentateuch  was  developed  into  its  final  form — has 
only  been  solved  after  the  lapse  of  some  two  and  a  half 
centuries. 

The  history  of  Pentateuchal  criticism  falls  into  well-defined 
periods,  each  of  which  can  be  distinguished  by  some  dominating 
tendency  embodied  in  a  ruling  critical  hypothesis.  In  this  way 
different  elements  of  truth  have  been  emphasised,  which  have 
at  the  last  found  their  proper  place  in  the  final  result. 

(1)  AYhat  may  be  called  the  Earlier  Documentary  Hypothesis 
was  started  by  the  publication  anonymously  in  1753  at  Brussels 
of  a  book  by  a  French  physician,  J.  Astruc  (died  1766),  entitled 
‘  Conjectures  sur  les  memoires  originaux  dont  il  paroit  que  Moyse 
s’est  servi  pour  composer  le  livre  de  la  Genese.’  Having  observed 
that  certain  chapters  of  Genesis  were  distinguished  by  the  use  of 
the  divine  name  Elohim  while  others  employed  that  of  Jahveh, 
Astruc  was  able  to  distinguish  an  Elohim-narrative  (Gen.  i.  and 
V.)  and  a  Jahveh  {Jehovah)  narrative  (Gen.  ii.-iv.).  As,  how¬ 
ever,  the  whole  Book  of  Genesis  could  not  be  divided  up 
on  this  basis,  Astruc  formed  the  hypothesis  that  ten  smaller 
documents  had  also  entered  into  the  compilation — the  whole 
twelve  having  been  utilised  by  Moses,  who  compiled  the  entire 
book.  Astruc’s  rather  crude  hypothesis  was  developed  by  Eichorn 
and  K.  D.  Ilgen  (in  a  volume  published  in  1798). 

(2)  The  Fragmentary  Hypothesis  marked  the  next  stage  in  the 
critical  development.  This  was  first  propounded  by  an  English 
Roman  Catholic  theologian,  A.  Geddes,  in  1800.  Geddes  analysed 
the  entire  Pentateuch  into  a  number  of  smaller  and  larger  frag¬ 
ments  which  emanated  from  an  Elohistic  and  a  Jehovistic  circle. 
Among  these  sources  he  included  the  ‘journals’  of  Moses.  This 
hypothesis  was  most  fully  developed  by  Vater  (died  1826)  in 
his  Commentary  on  the  Pentateuch  (3  vols.  1802-1805).  Vater 
regards  the  Pentateuch  as  having  been  formed  about  the  time  of 
the  Exile.  It  is  essentially  a  compilation  of  fragments  of  old 
documents  which  were  then  collected  when  they  were  in  danger 
of  being  lost. 

(3)  'The  Supplementary  Hypothesis  marked  a  reaction  agains 
the  excesses  of  the  Fragmentary-theory.  Its  best  representative 
is  perhaps  F.  Bleek.  According  to  this  theory  the  basis  of  the 
Pentateuch  is  formed  b}’  a  continuous  historical  work  which  dealt 
with  the  history  from  creation  to  the  conquest  of  Canaan.  This 
source  is  the  work  of  tlie  so-called  Elohist  ^  (composed  in  the  reign 
of  Saul).  It  contained  the  main  part  of  the  first  four  books  of  the 


^  Including  what  is  now  distinguished  as  the  Priestly  Code 

(=r). 


THE  HEXATEUCH 


86 


Pentateuch  and  of  the  Book  of  Joshua,  together  with  the  account 
of  Moses  death  (Dent,  xxxiv.  1-8).  This  was  subsequently  en- 
laiged  and  levised,  probably  in  the  time  of  David,  by  a  Jchovistic 
editor,  who  added  new  sections,  and  edited  the  earlier  document 
as  well.  The  last  revision  was  carried  out  by  the  autlior  of 
Deuteronomy  (in  the  reign  of  King  Manasseh).  This  writer  com¬ 
posed  Deuteronomy  and  revised  the  earlier  composite  work  in  a 
Deuteronomic  spirit.  The  fatal  defect  of  this  theory  was  made 
manifest  when  it  was  shown  that  the  supposed  supplemental 
sections  when  detached  and  pieced  together  proved  to  belong 
themselves  to  a  document  which  possessed  a  well-defined  indb 
viduality  of  its  own,  and  must  have  been  originally  an  independent 
writing.  Hence  arose 

(4)  The  later  Documentary  Hypothesis  which  was  launched  on 
essentially  modern  lines  by  Hupfeld  (1853),  who  distinguished 
three  independent  documents  which  have  been  worked  up  into 
^  redactor.  The  latest  and  most  widely  accepted  form 
Documentary  Hypothesis  is  represented  in  the  works  of 
>v  ellhausen  and  Kuenen. 

Most  modern  critical  scholars  are  now  agreed  that  the 
1  entateuch  is  a  compilation  made  up  of  four  independent 
written  sources,  viz.  ;  a  Jahvistic  work  {  =  J),  and  a 
slightly  younger  work  parallel  to  it,  an  Elohistic  docu¬ 
ment  (  =  E,  identical  with  the  ^second’  or  ^younger’ 
Elohist  of  the  earlier  theories),^  a  Deuteronomic  work 
(  =  D),  and  a  Priestly  work,  the  "Priestly  Code’  (=P), 
which  is  identical  with  the  so-called  "Foundation¬ 
writing  ’  ("  Grundschrift  ’)  or  "  first  Elohist.  ’  ^  About  the 
extent  and  contents  of  these  four  sources  there  is 
essential  agreement  among  modern  scholars.  But  the 
age  of  the  documents  is  still,  to  some  extent,  a  matter 
of  debate.  More  particularly,  is  P  the  oldest  or  the 
youngest  element  in  the  Pentateuch  (liexateuch) 
Though  it  embodies  to  some  extent  a  tradition  of  earlier 
usage,  the  majority  of  modern  critical  scholars  are  agreed 
that  P  represents  the  latest  literary  stratum  in  tlie 
Pentateuch  (Hexateuch),  and  only  became  authoritative 
when  it  was  (substantially  in  its  present  form)  promul¬ 
gated  by  Ezra  in  44-4  n. c.  [A  document  included  in  P, 

Apparently  J  and  E  had  been  fused  before  they  were  used 
as  a  source  for  the  Pentateuch.  In  this  combined  form  they  are 
indicated  by  the  symbol  JE. 

Two  entirely  independent  sources  use  Elohim,  viz.  :  P  and 

the  narrative  (parallel  to  J),  which  is  now  indicated  usually 
as  hi,  ^ 


36 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LITERATURE 


but  originally  independent  of  it,  is  the  so-called  ^  Law  of 
Holiness’  (  =  H),  i.e.  Lev.  xvii.-xxvi.] 

The  dating  adopted  for  the  sources  in  the  present  volume  may 
roughly  be  stated  as  follows  : — 

.T  in  its  original  form  c.  850  b.c.  (a  Judaean  source). 

E  ,,  ,,  c.  750  B.c.  (an  Ephraimite  source). 

J  and  E  combined  (=JE)  sometime  before  650  b.c. 

D  (presupposes  JE)  promulgated  621  b.c. 

H  (Law  of  Holiness)  midway  between  D  and  P. 

1*  (which  then  included  H)  promulgated  444  (compiled  sub¬ 
stantially  between  570  and  500  probably). 

§  1.  Genesis. 

Title  and  Contents.— The  Book  of  Genesis  derives  its 
name  from  the  LXX.,  where  it  bears  the  title  yiveais 
Koafiov,  the  generation  or  origin  of  the  world.^ 

Its  contents  fall  into  two  main  divisions,  viz.  : 

(a)  Ch.  i.-xi.  9  containing  the  accounts  of  creation 

and  the  primaeval  history.  The  story  is  carried 
down  to  the  Deluge  and  the  scattering  abroad 
of  mankind. 

(b)  Ch.  xii.-L  contain  the  history  of  the  ancestors  of 

the  Israelitish  nation,  Abraham,  Isaac,  Jacob, 
and  the  Patriarchs.  The  narrative  is  carried 
down  to  the  death  of  Joseph. 

Structure  of  the  Book. — The  Book  has  been  constructed 
in  accordance  with  a  definite  plan  which  can  be  clearly 
traced.  This  is  shown  by  the  recurrence  of  the  formula. 
These  are  the  generations  (Heb.  toleddth,  lit.  begettings)  of 
.  .  .,  which  appears  no  less  than  ten  times  in  the  Book 
(ii.  4a,  the  generation  of  heaven  and  earth  ;  v.  1,  of 
Adam  ;  vi.  9,  of  Noah  ;  x.  1,  of  the  sons  of  Noah  ; 
xi.  10,  of  Shem  ;  xi.  27,  of  Terah  ;  xxv.  12,  of  Ishmael ; 
XXV.  19,  of  Isaac  ;  xxxvi.  1,  of  Esau  ;  xxxvii.  2,  of  Jacob. 
As  the  formula  in  all  other  cases  introduces  the  genea¬ 
logical  account  (which  immediately  follows)  it  is  probable 
its  position  in  ii.  4a  is  not  original,  but  ought  to  pre¬ 
cede  ch.  i.,  to  which  it  obviously  refers  as  well  as  to 
ii.  4f.). 

The  scheme  of  the  Book  follows  a  definite  metliod.  It 

1  This  is  deduced  from  the  rendering  of  ch.  ii.  4a  :  avTH)  h 
yevcffeios  ovpavov  sal  The  Jewish  title  (n''l^^{<”l3) 

from  the  opening  (Hel)rew)  word  has  already  been  explained 
above. 


THE  HEXATEUCH 


37 


gradually  converges  upon  Israel.  ^  The  attention  of  the 
reader  is  fixed  upon  Israel,  which  is  gradually  disengaged 
from  the  nations  and  tribes  related  to  it ;  at  each  stage 
of  the  history,  a  brief  general  account  of  the  collateral 
branches  having  been  given,  they  are  dismissed,  and  the 
narrative  is  limited  more  and  more  to  the  immediate  line 
of  Israel’s  ancestors.  Thus  after  ch.  x.  (the  ethno¬ 
graphical  table)  all  the  descendants  of  Noah  disappear, 
excei)t  the  line  of  Shem,  xi.  10  ff.  ;  after  xxv.  12-18, 
Ishmael  disappears,  and  Isaac  alone  remains  ;  after  ch. 
xxxvi.  Esau  and  his  descendants  disappear,  and  only 
Jacob  and  his  sons  are  left.  The  same  method  is  adopted 
in  the  intermediate  parts  :  thus  in  xix.  30-38  the  relation 
to  Israel  of  the  cognate  peoples  of  Moab  and  Ammon  is 
explained  ;  in  xxii.  20-24  (sons  of  Abraham’s  brother 
Nahor)  and  xxv.  1-4  (sons  of  Abraham’s  concubine 
Keturah)  the  relation  to  Israel  of  certain  Aramean  tribes 
is  explained.’  ^ 

The  Sources  of  Genesis. — This  unity  of  plan  is  due  to  the 
compiler  who  has  selected  and  arranged  his  material  in 
accordance  with  it.  But  the  material  of  which  the  Book 
is  composed  is  drawn  from  different  sources,  which  can 
be  traced  throughout.  One  of  the  most  striking  indica¬ 
tions  of  this  is  the  presence  of  double  narratives.  The 
same  event  or  a  series  of  events  is  narrated  in  independent 
forms.  Also  the  language  and  representation  vary  in  a 
way  that  accords  with  the  employment  of  different 
sources. 

At  the  outset  we  are  confronted  with  a  double  narrative  of 
creation  and  the  appearance  of  man  upon  the  earth  (ch.  i.  1-ii.  4a, 
and  ii.  46-25).  That  the  second  account  is  not  merely  supple¬ 
mentary  but  proceeds  from  a  different  source  appears  clearly 
when  the  two  are  closely  examined.  ‘  The  order  of  creation  is 
different,  the  'phraseology  and  literary  style  are  different,  and  the 
representation,  especially  the  representation  of  the  Deity,  is 
different.’  2  The  second  narrative  has  more  primitive  features,  it 
is  freer  and  more  picturesque,  and  is  without  the  set  formulas  of 
ch.  i.  Notice  also  that  the  creation  of  man  (ii.  7)  precedes  that  of 
beasts  and  birds  (ii.  19)  and  of  woman  (ii.  21  f.).  Contrast  the 
order  in  ch.  i.  In  the  second  account  the  representation  of  God 
is  much  more  anthropomorphic  (in  the  first,  God  creates  by  a 
series  of  words ;  in  the  second,  He  moulds,  breathes  into  man  the 
breath  of  life,  etc.  ;  He  ivalks  in  the  garden,  makes  coats  of  skins, 


^  Driver,  Genesis,  pp.  ii.  f. 


2  Driver,  op.  cit.  p.  iii. 


38 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LITERATURE 


etc.).  Of  linguistic  differences  the  most  striking  are  the  use  of 
two  different  names  for  God  {Elohim  in  the  first  account,  Jahvch 
in  the  second);  create  in  first  account  —  maA’c  in  the  second. 
Notice  also  the  schematic  arrangement  of  the  first  account ;  the 
six  days,  the  recurring  formula  evening  .  .  .  morning,  And  God 
saw  that  it  was  good,  etc. ;  the  doctrine  of  man  being  made  in 
God’s  image  is  also  a  striking  feature.  Other  duplicate  accounts 
in  Genesis  are : — 

1.  The  Deluge  narrative  :  vi.  9-13  [wickedness  of  the  earth]  — vi. 

5-8  ;  vii.  1-5  [seven  of  every  clean  beast,  and  two  of  every 
unclean,  to  be  taken  into  the  Ark]=vi.  18-22  [two  of  ail 
beasts  without  distinction  to  be  taken]. 

2.  God’s  covenant  with  Noah  (viii.  20-22~ix.  8-17). 

3.  God’s  covenant  with  Abraham  (xv.  =xvii. ). 

4.  Abraham  and  Sarah  in  Gerar  (ch.  xx.)  =  Isaac  and  Rebekah  in 

Gerar  (ch.  xxvi.  1-11). 

5.  Abraham  and  Abimelech,  the  covenant  at  Beersheba  (ch.  xxi. 

22-32)  =  Isaac  and  Abimelech  (ch.  xxvi.  12-31). 

6.  The  origin  of  the  name  Bethel  (xxviii.  10-22=xxxv.  9-15). 

7.  Jacob  receives  the  name  of  Israel  (xxxii.  22-32=xxxv.  9-13). 

8.  Two  lists  of  the  dukes  of  Edom  (xxxvi.  15-19=xxxvi.  40-43). ^ 

The  two  accounts  of  creation  whicli  have  been  exam¬ 
ined  above  belong  to  two  distinct  documentary  sources 
which  can  be  traced  through  the  entire  Hexateuch.^ 
The  first  belongs  to  the  source  now  usually  denoted  by 
the  symbol  !*(  =  Priests’  Code  ;  it  is  identical  with  the 
writing  of  the  older  Elohist).  The  parts  of  Genesis 
which  belong  to  P  are  clearly  distinguishable ;  they 
include,  besides  the  creation-narrative  (i.  1-ii.  4a),  an 
enumeration  of  Adam’s  descendants  through  Seth  to 
Noah  (v.  1-28,  30-32) ;  the  Flood-story,  w’ith  an  account 
of  God’s  covenant  with  Noah  (vi.  9-22  ;  vii.  6,  11,  13-]6a, 
18-21,  24;  viii.  l-2a,  36-5,  le3a,  14-19;  ix.  1-17, 
28-29) ;  an  enumeration  of  nations  descended  from 
Japhet,  Ham,  and  Shem  (x.  1-7,  20,  22-28,  31-32);  the 
line  of  Shem’s  descendants  to  Terah  (xi.  10-26) ;  an 
account  of  Abraham’s  family  (xi.  27,  31-32)  ;  and  wander¬ 
ings  (xii.  46-5  ;  xiii.  6,  116-12a) ;  the  birth  of  Ishmael 
(xvi.  la,  3,  15-16) ;  the  institution  of  circumcision  (xvii.); 
destruction  of  the  cities  of  the  Plain  (xix.  29) ;  birth  of 

^  Cf.  in  Exodus  the  double  narratives  of  the  revelation  of  the 
name  Jahveh  (iii.  13-15=vi.  2-7);  of  the  directions  concerning 
the  Passover  (xii.  l-13=xii.  21-27);  of  the  feast  of  unleavened 
bread  (xii.  14-20=xiii.  3-10);  of  the  first-born  (xiii.  1  f.  =xiii. 
11-16). 

*  For  a  fuller  discussion  of  these  see  p.  59  f. 


THE  HEXATEUCH 


89 


Isaac  (xxi.  Ih,  2b-5);  purchase  of  Machpelali  (xxv. 
T-llrt)  ;  a  list  of  tribes  tracing  their  origin  to  Ishmael 
(xxv.  12-17);  Isaac’s  marriage  with  Eebekah,  Esau’s 
Hittite  wives,  Jacob’s  journey  to  Paddaii-Arram  to  obtain 
a  wife  (xxv.  19-20,  2Qb ;  xxvi.  84-85  ;  xxvii.  46-xxviii. 
9) ;  Jacob’s  marriage  and  life  in  Canaan  (xxix.  24,  29  ; 
xxxi.  18/>  ;  xxxiii.  18«  ;  xxxiv.  l-2rt,  4,  6,  8-10,  18-18, 
20-24,  25  [in  part],  27-29)  ;  his  change  of  name  to  Israel 
(xxxv.  9-18,  15)  ;  the  death  of  Isaac  (xxxv.  225-29) ;  the 
history  of  Esau  (xxxvi.  in  the  main) ;  the  removal  of 
Jacob  and  his  family  to  Egypt  and  their  settlement  there 
(xxxvii.  l-2a,  xli.  46,  xlvi.  6-27,  xlvii.  5-6«,  7-11,  275)  ; 
Jacob’s  adoption  of  Ephraim  and  Manasseh  (xlviii.  8-6 
[7])  ;  his  farewell  speech  to  his  sons  (part),  and  burial 
(xlix.  la,  285-88,  1.  12-18). 

After  P  is  subtracted  there  still  remains  a  narrative 
which  bears  marks  of  being  composite  in  character.  The 
second  of  the  creation  accounts  examined  above  belongs 
to  a  source  which  uses  the  divine  name  Jahveh.  This  is 
the  Jahvistic  narrative  (J)  which  is  the  oldest  stratum 
(both  in  literary  formation  and  contents)  of  the  historical 
sources.  But  another  source  (E),  parallel  to  this,  and 
somewhat  younger,  appears  (first  in  ch.  xv.  or  xx.)  which 
uses  the  divine  name  of  Elohim.  These  sources  often 
appear  in  a  combined  form  (JE)  which  it  is  not  always 
possible  to  analyse  into  its  component  parts  with  absolute 
certainty.  ^ 

If  what  has  already  been  assigned  to  P  is  left  out  or 
account,  the  rest  of  the  primaeval  history  (ch.  i.-xi.) 
belongs  to  J. 

In  the  next  division  of  the  Book  (ch.  xii.-xxvi.,  the 
history  of  Abraham  and  Isaac)  the  remainder  is  drawn 
from  both  J  and  E  (the  latter  appearing  for  the  first  time 
in  ch.  XV.);  and  the  same  is  true  of  the  other  divisions 
(ch.  xxvii. -xxxv. ,  Jacob  and  Esau;  and  ch.  xxxvii. -1., 
Joseph). 

^  E  sometimes  appears  alone  [e.g.  xx.  1-17),  as  J  does  fairly  often. 
‘  The  method  of  the  compiler,  who  combined  J  and  E  together, 
was  sometimes,  it  would  seem,  to  extract  an  entire  narrative  from 
one  or  other  of  these  sources  (as  xx.  1-17  from  E  ;  xxiv.  from  J) ; 
sometimes,  while  taking  a  narrative  as  a  whole  from  one  source, 
to  incorporate  with  it  notices  derived  from  the  other ;  and  some¬ 
times  to  construct  his  narrative  of  materials  derived  from  each 
source  in  nearly  equal  proportion.’ — Driver,  L.O.T,,  p.  12. 


40 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LITERATURE 


The  Interpretation  of  the  Book. — The  old  controversies 
which  were  waged  on  the  historical  value  of  the  narra¬ 
tives  embodied  in  Genesis  have  largely  lost  their  point. 
Such  questions  as^  e.g.,  the  literal  accuracy  of  the  order  of 
events  narrated  in  the  story  of  the  creation,  no  longer 
assume  tlie  importance  assigned  to  them  formerly.  The 
narratives  are  approached  from  a  different  point  of  view. 
It  is  recognised  to-day,  in  the  light  of  fuller  knowledge, 
that  the  material  embodied  in  the  Book  is  largely  drawn 
from  popular  tradition,  and  has  affinities  with  the  tradi¬ 
tions  and  beliefs  of  other  Semitic  peoples.  This  is 
especially  apparent  in  the  early  chapters  which  deal  with 
the  primaeval  history.  Here  we  meet  with  culture  and 
other  forms  of  legend  wdiich  can  be  illustrated  from 
Assyrian  and  Babylonian  sources,  for  instance.  But  the 
result  of  such  comparison  has  been  to  enhance  the  religious 
value  of  the  Hebrew  narratives.  The  material  of  popu¬ 
lar  tradition  has  been  made  the  vehicle  for  elevating  the 
moral  sense,  and  for  inculcating  high  religious  and 
ethical  ideas.  No  more  effective  method  for  elevating 
and  refining  the  religious  sense  of  a  people  could  be 
devised  than  that  of  infusing  its  traditional  literature 
with  a  lofty  ethical  spirit,  and  making  it  the  vehicle  for 
the  inculcation  of  simple  but  profound  lessons  about 
God’s  majesty,  uniqueness,  holiness,  and  moral  require¬ 
ment.  From  this  point  of  view  the  creation-narrative, 
for  instance,  remains  to-day  unique  in  literature  as  an 
impressive  and  majestic  expression  of  the  truth,  affirmed 
by  the  religious  consciousness,  that  the  material  universe 
is  the  creation  of  an  Almighty  and  all-holy  God.  In  the 
depth  and  purity  of  its  religious  ideas — in  the  religious 
spirit  that  pervades  it  throughout — the  sacred  literature 
of  Israel  is  unique  among  the  literatures  of  the  world. 

§  2.  Exodus. 

Title  and  Contents. — The  Book  derives  its  name  from  the 
LXX.  (e’ldSay,  Latinised  form  Exodus),  which  apparently 
deduced  it  from  ch.  xix.  1  in  the  third  month  of  the 
exodus  e|dSou]  of  the  cliildren  of  Israel  from  the 
land  of  Plgypt’).  Its  Hebrew  title  is  taken  from  the 
opening  words  OG  more  shortly, 

The  contents  of  the  Book  fall  into  two  parts,  A.ch.  i.-xviii., 


THE  HEXATEUCH 


41 


which  describes  Israelis  oppression  in  Egypt,  the  history 
of  Moses  and  the  deliverance  of  his  people  from  oppres¬ 
sion,  issuing  in  the  Exodus  and  the  journey  to  Sinai: 
and  B.  ch.  ncix.-xL,  Israel  at  Sinai. 

Structure  and  Analysis  of  the  Book. — The  Book  is  con¬ 
structed  on  essentially  the  same  lines  as  Genesis,  the 
same  sources,  P  and  JE,  having  been  utilised  in  its  com¬ 
position.  But  the  redactional  element  is  rather  more 
prominent  than  in  the  case  of  Genesis.  Ihree  strata  of 
this  kind  can  be  distinguished,  viz.  :  editorial  matter 
which  is  distinctively  priestly  in  tone  (denoted  usually  by 
the  symbol  this  is  of  late  date  (450-300  b.c.  about) ; 
editorial  matter  which  is  Deuteronomic  in  tone  or  lan¬ 
guage  (R^*  :  GOO  550  b.c.);  and  such  as  falls  under 
neither  of  these  heads  (IP®  ;  c.  750-G50  b.c.). 

The  following  detailed  analysis  of  Part  I.  will  serve  to 
illustrate  the  complex  character  of  the  narrative  : — 

Part  I.  (ch.  i.-xviii.) :  (a)  i.-ii.  22  :  The  early  life  oj  Moses  : 
(Pi.  1-7,  13-14;  E  i.  8-12,  ii.  1-23) ;  (b)  ii.  23-vii.  13; 
the  call  of  Moses :  (E  iii.  1-G  :  J  iii.  7-8  :  E  iii.  9-15  : 
.1  iii.  16-20 :  E  iii.  21-22  :  J  iv.  1-16  :  E  iv.  17-18  :  J  iv. 
19-20a  :  E  iv.  205-21  :  J  iv.  22-vi.  1  :  P  vi.  2-vii.  13). 

(c)  vii.  14-xi  :  The  -first  nine  signs  :  (J  vii.  14-18  :  P  vii. 
19-20«  :  E  vii.  205-21a  :  P  vii.  215-22  :  J  vii.  23  :  E  vii. 
24 :  J  vii.  25-viii.  4 :  P.  viii.  5-7  :  J  viii.  8-15« :  P  viii. 
155-19  :  J  viii.  20-ix.  7  :  P  ix.  8-12  :  J  ix.  13-21  :  E 
ix.  22-23U  :  J  ix.  235-34  :  E  ix.  (24rt)  35  :  J  x.  1-7  :  E  x. 
8-13a :  J  x.  135-19  (14u  E) :  Ex.  20-27  :  J  x.  28-29 :  E 

xi.  1-3 :  J  xi.  4-8  :  E  xi.  9-10). 

(d)  xii.-xiii.  16:  The  Passover  and  feast  of  unleavened 
bread ;  the  dedication  of  the  first-born  and  the  departure  : 
(P  xii.  1-20  :  JE  xii.  21-27  :  P  xii.  28  :  JE  xii.  29-39  :  P 

xii.  40-51,  xiii.  1-2:  JE  xiii.  3  16:  the  double  treat¬ 
ment  of  the  narrative  is  especially  prominent  in  this 
section). 

(e)  xiii.  Vi -XV.  21:  The  beginning  of  the  journeyings  ; 
crossing  of  the  lied  Sea  :  (E  xiii.  17-19  :  P  xiii.  20  :  J  xiii. 
21-22  :  P  xiv.  1-4  :  J  xiv.  5-7  :  P  xiv.  8-9  :  JE  xiv.  10  :  J 
xiv.  11-14:  P  xiv.  15-18:  JE  xiv.  19-20:  P  xiv.  21a 
(215  J)-23  :  J  xiv.  24-25:  P  xiv.  26-29  (275  J):  J  xiv. 
30-31  :  E  XV.  1-18 :  P  xv.  19  :  E  xv.  20-21). 

(f)  XV.  22-xviii.  :  From  the  Red  Sea  to  Sinai  :  (J  xv.  22- 
27  :  P  xvi.  1-3  (5  ?)  :  J  xvi.  4  :  P  xvi.  6-24  :  J  (?)  xvi.  25- 


42 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LITERATURE 


33  :  P  xvi.  31-3G  :  P  xvii.  ]«  :  J  (or  E)  xvii.  16-2  :  E  xvii. 
3-G  :  J  xvii.  7  :  E  xvii.  8-16  and  xviii). 

Part  II.  (ch.  xix.-xl.)  is  mainly  concerned  with  the 
events  at  Sinai.  Its  subject-matter  may  be  analysed  in 
detail  as  follows  (a)  the  Theophany  (xix.  and  xx.  18-21  : 
all  JE  except  xix.  l-2«) :  (h)  Five  groups  of  Laws  :  (1)  The 
Decalog’ue  (xx.  1-17):  two  groups  of  laws  contained  in 
‘  The  Book  of  the  Covenant’  (xx.  20-xxiii.  33)  viz.  :  (2) 
a  series  called  judgment s  (Heb.  niishputim)  all  expressed 
in  hypothetical  form  (xxi.  1-xxii.  17)  :  (3)  Regulations 
regarding  worship  and  religious  festivals,  xx.  22-26, 
xxii.  29-30,  xxiii.  10-19  ;  (4)  A  parallel  series  in  xxxiv. 
10-26 ;  (5)  A  series  of  laws  of  a  moral  and  ethical 
character,  mostly  negative  in  form  :  xxii.  18-28,  xxiii. 
1-9.  (c)  Narratives  connected  with  the  covenant-laws 

(xxiv.  1-11  ;  xxxiii.  7-11  ;  xxxiv.  1-5,  27,  28)  :  (d)  Narra¬ 
tives  connected  with  the  Decalogue  ([xix.  7-8]  xxiv.  12-18, 
xxxi.  18,  xxxiv.  29-35). 

[  I  he  extreme  complexity  of  the  narratives  contained  in 
ch.  xix. -xxiv.  is  apparent  from  the  analysis.  Apparently 
two  (divergent)  views  are  represented  in  the  tradition, 
one  which  makes  the  Decalogue  (Ex.  xx.  1-17)  the  sole 
basis  of  the  covenant,  and  another  which  connected  the 
groups  of  laws  contained  in  The  Book  of  the  Covenant  with 
the  covenant.  ]  ^  (e)  The  sin  of  the  people  (xxxii.  1-29,  35 ; 
xxxii.  30-34;  xxxiii.  1-6,  12-23;  xxxiv.  6-9  [Moses’  inter¬ 
cession]):  (f)  The  Tahernacle  and  its  ministers  (ch.  xxv.- 
xxxi.  and  xxxv.-xl.  Here  JE  completely  disappears,  and 
the  entire  sections  belong  to  P  or  his  school). 

Historical  Value  of  the  Book. — It  is  necessary  to  under¬ 
stand  the  complicated  structure  of  the  Book  in  order 
properly  to  estimate  the  real  significance  of  the  narra- 

1  Full  details  of  the  sources  cannot  be  given  in  this  analysis. 
They  must  be  sought  elsewhere  {e.g.  in  Driver,  etc.). 

2  The  Deuteronomic  code  of  laws  (Dent,  xii.-xxvi.)  is  largely 
based  uponand  is  an  expanded  form  of  the  ‘  judgments  ’  contained 
in  Ex.  xxi. -xxii.  17.  It  is  possible  that  the  latter  in  the  original 
narrative  of  JE  stood  where  D  stands  now.  When  D  was  added 
to  JE  the  ‘judgment’  lav/s  were  combined,  it  has  been  thought, 
with  the  rest  of  E’s  laws  at  Horeb,  and  thus  assumed  their  present 
place  in  the  Book  of  Exodus.  The  ‘  judgments  ’  collection  (Ex. 
xxi. -xxii.  17)  can  hardly  belong  to  its  present  position.  It  is  a 
collection  of  case-law,  ■which  perhaps  goes  back  to  the  priesthood 
at  Bethel.  It  implies  a  long  legal  history  and  experience,  and  is 
obviously  unsuited  to  form  part  of  the  laws  on  which  the 
covenant  at  Sinai  was  based. 


THE  HEXATEUCH 


43 


tives,  and  interpret  them  aright.  It  is  highly  significant, 
for  instance,  that  the  chapters  which  describe  in  detail 
the  Tabernacle  and  its  ministers  (xxv.-xxxi.  and  xxxv.-xl.) 
emanate  entirely  from  P.  Such  a  section  as  ch.  xviii., 
which  almost  wholly  comes  from  E,  judged  from  a  purely 
historic  point  of  view,  possesses  great  interest  and  value. 
‘  It  exhibits  to  us  a  picture  of  Moaes  legislating.  Disputes 
arise  among  the  people  ;  the  contending  parties  come 
to  Moses  to  have  them  settled  ;  he  adjudicates  between 
them  ;  and  his  judgments  are  termed  the  statutes  and 
decisions  {Toroth)  of  God.’  It  was  the  historic  function 
of  the  priests  to  give  deeisions  (tord,  toi'oth)  upon  cases 
submitted  to  them,  in  matters  both  of  civil  right  (Deut. 
xvii.  II)  and  ceremonial  observance  (ch.  xxiv.  8);  and 
here  Moses  himself  appears  discharging  the  same  func¬ 
tions,  and  so  laying  the  foundation  of  Hebrew  law.’^ 
[For  the  Decalogue  and  the  Book  of  the  Covenant  more 
particularly  cf.  p.  ,55  f.] 

§  3.  Leviticus. 

Title  and  general  Character. — The  name  Leviticus  is  a 
Latinised  form  of  the  Greek  title  AeviriKov,  that  which 
pertains  to  or  concerns  the  Levites.^  The  Jewish  title,  de¬ 
rived  from  its  opening  word,  is 
^law  of  priests’  occurs  also  fairly  frequently). 

It  is  entirely  derived  from  the  Priests’  Code  (P) :  ch. 
xvii.-xxvi.,  however,  form  a  distinct  section  with  many 
independent  features.  This  once,  according  to  the 
critical  view,  existed  in  an  independent  form  before  it 
was  incorporated  into  P.  It  is  usually  designated  the 
Law  of  Holiness  (symbol  LI). 

Analysis  of  the  Book. — The  subject-matter  of  the  Book 
may  he  grouped  under  five  principal  heads  : — 

I.  Ch.  i.-vii.  :  The  law  of  the  principal  types  of  sacrifice, 
wAth  a  final  section  of  directions  regulating  the  duties  and 
privileges  of  the  priests  {{a)  the  burnt-olfering,  Heh. 

ch.  i.  ;  (5)  the  meal-offering,  (Heb.  or 

^  Driver,  L.O.T.^  p.  28. 

2  The  adjective  \cviTiK6s  =  Lev{tical  occurs  in  the  New  Testa¬ 
ment,  Heb.  vii.  11. 


44 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LITERATURE 


cli.  ii-  ;  (^)  the  peace-offering'  (Heb. 

D''p^^'  cli.  iii.  ;  (d)  the  sin-offering  (Heb.  UXpHj, 

ch.  iv.-v.  13 ;  (e)  the  trespass-offering  (Heb. 

ch.  V.  14-26  =  E.V.  V.  14-vi.  7. 

(f)  Directions  regulating  the  duties  and  privileges  of  the 
priests  (ch.  vi.-vii. — E.V.  vi.  8-vii.)  viz.  :  in  sacrificing 
tlie  burnt-offering  (vi.  1-0),  the  meal-offering  (vi.  7-11), 
the  High  Priest’s  daily  meal-offering  (vi.  12-16),  the  sin- 
offering  (vi.  17-22)  :  other  directions,  as  to  the  ritual  or 
tlie  guilt-offering,  on  certain  particular  kinds  of  peace- 
ofi'ering,  (the  thank-offering,  the  vow  and  the  voluntary 
offering),  on  fat  and  blood,  etc.,  follow  (ch.  vii.  1-34),  the 
whole  being  concluded  by  two  subscriptions  (vii.  85-30 
and  87-38).  The  .subscriptions  refer  to  the  section  ch. 
vi.-vii.  only. 

II.  ch.  viii.-x.  :  The  consecration  of  the  priests  and  their 
solemn  entrg  upon  office.  (Ch.  viii.,  Aaron  and  his  sons 
consecrated  to  the  priesthood  in  accordance  with  Ex. 
xxix.  1-37:  ch.  ix.,  Aaron  aud  his  sons  solemnly  enter 
upon  their  office :  ch.  x.,  the  death  of  Nadab  and 
Abihu  :  various  directions  as  to  priestly  conduct  in  the 
sacrifice). 

III.  Ch.  xi.-xvi. :  Laws  concerning  clean  and  unclean,  and 
the  Day  of  Atonement.  (Ch.  xi.,  clean  and  unclean  animals; 
ch.  xii.,  purification  after  childbirth;  ch.  xiii.-xiv., 
leprosy  (in  man,  clothing,  houses);  ch.  xv.,  purification 
after  uncleanness  caused  by  certain  natural  secretions ; 
ch.  xvi. ,  the  ceremonial  of  the  Day  of  Atonement.) 

IV.  Ch.  xvii.-xxvi. :  The  Law  of  Holiness  (H). — This  group 
of  chapters  is  in  its  general  character  similar  to  P  ; 
but  there  is  an  element  in  it  which  at  the  same  time 
distinguishes  it  from  P.  This  is  shown  partly  in 
peculiarities  of  style  and  phraseology  which  recur,  and 
partly  in  the  presence  of  a  certain  tone  and  spirit. 
^The  phenomena  which  the  chapters  present  are  ex¬ 
plained  by  the  supposition  that  an  independent — and  in 
all  probability  an  older — body  of  priestly  legislation  lies 
at  the  basis  of  cli.  xvii.-xxvi.,  which  has  been  incor¬ 
porated  in  P — either  by  the  compiler  of  P,  or  by  a 
redactor  writing  under  the  influence  of  P — sometimes 
(as  it  would  seem)  with  slight  changes  of  form  intro- 


THE  HEXATEUCH 


45 


duced  for  the  purpose  of  accommodating  it  to  P,  at 
other  times  interwoven  with  elements  derived  from  P.’  ^ 

This  older  element  which  has  been  worked  into  P 
is  distinguished  from  the  latter  by  its  use  of  expressions 
])eculiar  (or  almost  peculiar)  to  itself^  and  also  by  a 
characteristic  method  in  setting  forth  the  laws  (especi¬ 
ally  in  the  prominence  given  to  certain  principles  and 
motives).  Holiness  (partly  ceremonial,  partly  moral),  as 
a  principle  and  quality  marking  out  Israel,  is  especially 
prominent  xix.  2:  Ye  shall  he  holy;  for  I,  Jahveh, 
your  God,  am  holy;  xx.  7-8,  26;  xxi.  6-8,  15,  23;  xxii. 
*9,  16,  82).  Holiness,  indeed,  is  emphasised  so  strongly 
and  insisted  upon  so  urgently  in  these  chapters,  that  it 
may  be  regarded  as  their  most  distinguishing  feature 
(hence  the  name  Law  of  Holiness). 

The  Holiness-collection  has  other  marks  which  point  to 
its  originally  independent  character.  Notice,  especially, 
the  miscellaneous  character  of  its  contents  as  compared 
witli  the  careful  grouping  that  distinguishes  Lev.  i.-xvi. ; 
some  of  the  subjects,  also,  which  have  already  been  dealt 
with  in  the  earlier  chapters  of  the  Book  are  treated  of 
again  in  I!  {cp.  xvii.  10-14  [eating  of  blood]  with  vii.  26  f. ; 
xix.  6-8  [disposal  of  the  flesh  of  peace-offerings]  with 
vii.  15-18 ;  XX.  25  [clean  and  unclean  animals]  with 
ch.  xi.  In  this  connection,  also,  the  parenetic  ending  in 
xxvi.  46  (‘^ These  are  the  statutes  and  judgments  and 
laws,’  etc)  is  noteworthy.  The  solemn  hortatory  close 
concludes,  in  exactly  the  same  manner,  the  two  other 
independent  Pentateuchal  Codes,  the  Book  of  the  Cove¬ 
nant  (Ex.  XX.  20-xxiii.  83)  and  the  legislative  code  em- 
l)odied  in  Deuteronomy  (ch.  xii.-xxvi.,  xxviii.).  See  the 
endings  to  these  collections.  Ex.  xxiii.  20  ff.,  and  Deut. 
xxviii.  The  affinities  of  H  with  Ezekiel  are  also  par¬ 
ticularly  striking. 

The  subject-matter  of  Lev.  xvii. -xxvi.  may  he  analysed 
cursorily  as  follows  :  ch.  xvii.,  the  slaughtering  of  sacri¬ 
ficial  animals — the  place  of  sacrifice  (central  sanctuary) 
—  eatine:  of  the  blood  forbidden — the  flesh  of  animals 
dying  naturally  or  torn  by  beasts  not  to  be  eaten  ; 
c  'h.  xviii.,  laws  as  to  forbidden  marriages  and  unchastity  ; 
ch.  xix.,  miscellaneous  prescriptions  regulating  the  re- 


1  Driver,  op.  cit.  p.  44. 


46 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LITERATURE 


ligious  and  moral  behaviour  of  Israelites;  ch.  xx.,  pen¬ 
alties  enacted  for  offences  specified  in  ch.  xviii.  and  xix. 
3a,  81  ;  ch.  xxi.-xxii.,  prescriptions  concerning  priests 
and  offerings  (regulating  priest’s  domestic  life,  physical 
conditions  when  performing  priestly  functions,  etc.,  the 
conditions  to  be  satisfied  by  animals  when  offered  in 
sacrifice);  ch.  xxni.,  a  calendar  fixing  the  periods  of  the 
great  festivals,  and  in  particular  the  days  on  which  ^holy 
convocations,’  i.e.  solemn  religious  assemblies,  were  to  be 
held.  The  following  are  the  specified  days  ;  all  Sabbaths, 
the  first  and  seventh  days  of  Ma(;(^dth  (Feast  of  Unleavened 
Bread),  the  Feast  of  VTeeks,  New  Year’s  Day  (Tisri  1), 
Day  of  Atonement  (Tisri  10),  the  first  and  eighth  Day  of 
the  Feast  of  Tabernacles  (Booths);  ch.  xxiv.  1-9,  the 
holy  lamps  and  the  show-bread  ;  ch.  xxiv.  10-28,  laws  on 
blasphemy,  etc.;  ch.  xxv.,  the  Sabbatical  year  and  the 
year  of  jubilee  ;  ch.  xxvi.,  idolatry  forbidden;  injunc¬ 
tion  to  observe  the  Sabbath  ;  hortatory  conclusion  to  the 
code  (vers.  8-45)  with  subscription  (ver.  40). 

As  has  already  been  stated  above,  ch.  xvii.-xxvi.  are  marked 
by  peculiarities  of  phraseology :  e.c/.,  I  am  Jahveh,  especially 
at  the  end  of  an  injunction  or  series  of  such  (nearly  fifty  times) ; 
for  I,  J.,  am  holy  (xix.  2;  xx.  26,  etc.);  to  loalk  in  the  statutes 
(xviii.  3 ;  xx.  23,  etc.) ;  words  used  in  a  special  sense  :  e.g.,  she'er, 

‘ flesh ’= _o/  kin  (xviii.  12,  etc.);  zimmd,  evil  imrpose  (of 
unchastity),  'amith,  neighbour,  etc.i 

V.  Ch.  xxvii.:  Appendix  (P)  on  Vows  and  Tithes. 

§  4.  Numbers. 

Title  and.  Contents.— The  title  Numbers  is  a  translation 
of  the  LXX.  ’Apid/xoi,  adopted  also  by  the  Vulgate 
(Numeri).  4'he  Book  is  so  called  because* it  contains  the 
accounts  of  two  numberings  of  the  people,  the  first  carried 
out  in  the  second  year  of  the  Exodus,  the  second  in  the 
fortieth.  The  Jewish  name  is  derived  from  the  fifth 

word  in  the  opening  verse 

The  narrative  contained  in  the  Book  covers  events 
from  the  second  to  the  fortieth  year  of  the  Exodus. 
The  Book  opens  on  the  first  day  of  the  second  month  in 
the  second  year ,  the  departure  from  Sinai  the  same 
1  See  the  list  in  Driver,  op.  cit.  pp.  45  ff. 


THE  HEXATEUCH 


47 


month  is  related  in  x.  11-28;  the  arriv'al  in  the  wilder¬ 
ness  of  Paran  (or  Kadesh),  the  mission  of  the  spies,  the 
defeat  at  Hormali  are  detailed  in  ch.  xiii.-xiv. ;  in  ch.  xx.  1 
the  arrival  in  the  desert  of  Zin  (or  Kadesh)  in  the  fortieth 
year  is  recorded  ;  Aaron’s  death  (which  took  place  on 
the  first  day  of  the  fifth  month  of  the  fortieth  year  : 
cj.  xxxiii.  88)  is  related  in  ch.  xx.  28-29. 

The  general  structure  of  the  Book  is  similar  to  that  of 
Exodus,  JE  and  P  being  employed  as  sources.  But  the 
fusion  of  the  original  documents  is  not  so  complete  as  in 
the  earlier  Book. 

Analysis  of  tlie  Book. — I.  Ch.  i.-x.  10 1  A  long  eoctvact 
from  P  dealing  with  the  last  injunctions  and  events  at 
Sinai.  Ch.  i.,  census  of  males  above  the  age  of  twenty 
years  (608,  550  apart  from  the  Levites  who  are  appointed 
guardians  of  the  Tabernacle);  ch.  ii.,  the  disposition  of 
the  camp  and  of  the  tribes  on  the  march;  ch.  iii.-iv., 
the  Levites  taken  to  assist  the  priests  instead  of  the  first¬ 
born  ;  their  number  and  duties  ;  ch.  v.-vi.,  laws  regarding 
the  exclusion  of  the  leprous  and  unclean  from  the  camp, 
compensation  for  fraud,  ordeal  for  suspected  wives ,  of 
the  Nazirite;  the  priestly  blessing;  ch.  vii.,  gifts  of  the 
twelve  princes  of  the  tribes  at  the  consecration  of  the 
Tent  of  Meeting  ;  ch.  viii.,  the  care  of  the  golden  candle¬ 
stick — the  consecration  of  the  Levites  tor  their  duties 
(vers.  5-22;  cf.  iii.  5-18)— their  period  of  service  (from 
age  of  twenty-five  to  fifty) ;  ch.  Lv.  -x.  10,  the  Passover 
(followed  by  the  supplementary  one  a  month  later)  the 
cloud  as  a  signal  for  marching  and  halting  the  camp 
the  use  of  the  silver  trumpets  as  signals. 

II.  Ch.  X.  11-xxii.  1 :  From  Sinai  to  Moata  :  {a)  Ch.  x.  11-xiv., 
from  Sinai  to  Kadesh.  Ch.  x.  \^-xii.  JE,  the  departure 
from  Sinai — Hobab  as  guide — the  ark  on  the  march 
the  murmuring  ot  the  people  at  Jaberah  and  Kibiotli- 
liattaavah  —  appointment  of  seventy  elders  —  quails  — 
Miriam’s  leprosy;  ch.  xiii.-xiv.  (P  +  JE),  the  narrative 
of  the  spies  (including  the  defeat  at  Hormah). 

(5)  Ch.  xv.-xix.  :  Laws  and  events  which  fall  within  the 
thirty-seven  gears'  wandering  in  the  wilderness.  Ch.  xv.  (P), 
a  meal-  and  drink-offering  to  accompany  every  burnt- 
and  peace-oft'ering — offering  of  the  first  dough  sin- 
offering  —  Sabbatli -breaking  —  fringes  ;  ch.  xvi.-xvii 
(P  +  JE),  rebellion  of  Korah,  Dathan,  and  Abiram. 


48 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LITERATURE 


Here  the  composite  character  of  the  narrative  is  particularly 
evident.  In  JE  the  event  narrated  is  a  rebellion  of  laymen  (the 
Reubenites,  Dathan  and  Abiram)  against  the  civil  authority  of 
IVIoses  (his  judgeship).  They  with  their  tents  and  households  are 
swallowed  up  by  the  earth.  (The  JE  parts  of  the  narrative  are 
xvi.  lh-2a,  12-15,  25-2G,  276-34).  In  P  two  strata  of  narrative 
appear  to  be  combined.  In  one  of  these  (xvi.  la,  2h-7a,  18-24, 
27a,  326,  35,  41-50,  ch.  xvii.),  Korah,  at  the  head  of  250  princes 
of  the  congregation  (not  all  Levites),  protests  to  Moses  and  Aaron 
against  the  limitation  of  priestly  rights  to  the  tribe  of  Levi  on 
the  ground  that  ^  all  the  congregation  are  holy.’  The  issue  is 
decided  before  the  sanctuary  where  Korah  and  his  company  are 
consumed  by  fire  from  Jahveh.  Here  the  opposition  is  between 
the  tribe  of  Levi  and  the  other  tribes.  But  a  second  (and,  no 
doubt,  later)  stratum  of  the  P  narrative  gives  a  different  turn  to 
the  representation.  Here  (c/.  xvi.  76-11,  16-17,  36-40)  Korah 
appears  at  the  head  of  250  Levites  and  protests  against  the 
exclusive  priestly  privileges  claimed  by  the  sons  of  Aaron  (JE 
mentions  only  Dathan  and  Abiram,  P  only  Korah]. 

Ch.  xviii.  (P),  the  duties  and  official  rank  of  priests 
and  Levites ;  their  emoluments ;  ch.  xix.  (P),  the  rite 
of  purification  by  means  of  water  ming'led  with  the  ashes 
of  a  red  heifer — how  and  when  applied. 

(c)  Ch.  xx.-xxii.  1  (P  +  JE),  Israel  at  Kade.sh  :  their 
departure  thence  to  the  plains  of  Moab. 

III.  Ch.  xxii.  1-xxxvi.,  Israel  in  the  plains  of  Moab  :  (a) 
ch.  xxii.  2-xxiv.  (JE)^  the  Balaam  narrative. 

The  composite  character  of  the  narrative  here  is  evident  on 
examination,  and  the  same  double  character  attaches  to  the 
oracles  proper  (ch.  xxiii.-xxiv.)  Dillmann  assigns  xxiii.  to  E  and 
xxiv.  to  J.  The  tradition  of  the  Balaam  oracles  is  certainly  old. 
Perhaps  in  ch.  xxiv.  the  old  traditional  material  has  received  a 
Judaic  and  in  xxiii.  an  Ephraimitic  impress. 

(6)  Ch.  XXV.  (vers.  1-5  JE  ;  G-18  P);  the  Israelites  sin  at 
Shittim — the  zeal  of  Pliinehas  and  its  reward;  (c) 
ch.  xxvi.-xxxi.  (all  P)  :  ch.  xxvi.  (the  second  census 
[601,  780  men  above  twenty  years]  exclusive  of  Levites)  ; 
ch.  xxvii.  (the  law  of  the  inheritance  of  daug-hters  where 
there  is  no  son  [daughters  of  Zelophehad]— Moses  hidden 
to  view  the  Promised  Land — Joshua  appointed  his  suc¬ 
cessor) ;  ch.  xxviii.-xxix.  (a  priestly  calendar  regulating 
sacrifices  for  each  season) ;  ch.  xxx.  (the  law  of  vows)  ; 
{d)  ch.  xxxi.  (P),  war  of  vengeance  against  Midian ;  (e) 
ch.  xxxii.  (P-|  JE),  the  trans-Jordanic  region  assigned 
to  Gad,  Reuben,  and  IManasseh;  (/)  ch.  xxxiii.-xxxvi. 


THE  iip:xateucii 


49 


(all  P)  containing'  P’s  itinerary  of  tlic  wanderings,  etc. 
(xxxiii.),  a  description  of  the  borders  of  Canaan  (xxxiv.), 
the  appointment  of  forty-eight  cities  for  the  Levites, 
and  of  six  among  these  as  cities  of  refuge  (xxxv.) ;  the 
last  chapter  (xxxvi.)  directs  that  heiresses  possessing 
landed  property  shall  marry  into  their  own  tribe  (to 
preserve  the  tribal  territory  intact). 

§  5.  Deuteronomy. 

Title  and  Contents. — The  name  Deuteronomy  (‘^  second 
Law’)  comes  from  the  incorrect  rendering  given  in  the 
LXX.  to  Deut.  xvii.  18  (  TO  devrepovofjiLov  tovto),  for  the 
words  correctly  rendered  ‘a  copy  of  this  law/  which 
were  wrongly  supposed  to  refer  to  the  whole  book.  The 
Hebrew  title  is  derived  from  the  opening  words  of  the 

Book;  D'-in'in  or 

•  T  :  “  V  ••  •  T  : 

The  narrative  of  the  Book  records  events  of  the  last 
month  of  the  forty  years’  wanderings  (i.  3,  xxxiv.  8). 
But  it  is  mainly  occupied  with  the  farewell  discourse  of 
Moses  in  which  the  laws  that  Israel  is  called  upon  to 
obey  are  set  forth. 

In  detail  the  contents  are  as  follows  : — ^ 

Ch.  i.  1-5. — Historical  introduction,  describing  the  situation 
and  occasion  on  Avhich  the  discourses  following  were  delivered. 

Ch.  i.  6-iv.  40. — Moses’  fi7'st  discourse  (a  review  of  events 
connected  with  the  wanderings,  concluding  with  an  eloquent 
appeal  in  ch.  iv.  not  to  forget  the  great  truths  impressed  upon 
them  at  Horeb). 

Ch.  iv.  41-43. — A  short  historical  statement  concerning  the 
establishment  of  three  cities  of  refuge  on  the  other  side  of  the 
J ordan  by  Moses. 

Ch.  iv.  44-49. — Historical  introduction  of  Moses’ sreoneZ  discourse 
(which  embodies  the  legislation  proper). 

Ch.  v.-xxvi. — The  legislation  consisting  of  two  parts  :  (1)  Ch. 
v.-xi.,  hortatory  introduction  developingthe  first  commandment  of 
the  Decalogue,  and  urging  upon  Israel  the  general  theocratic 
l^rinciples  by  which,  as  a  nation,  it  is  to  be  guided;  (2)  ch.  xii.- 
xxvi.,  the  code  of  special  laws. 

Ch.  xxvii. — Injunctions  (described  in  the  third  person)  relative 
to  a  symbolical  acceptance  by  the  nation  of  the  preceding  code, 
after  taking  possession  of  Canaan. 

Ch.  xxviii.-xxix.  1. — Conclusion  of  the  code  (connected  closely 

1  Slightl}’’  abbreviated  from  the  table  given  in  Driver’s  L.0.2\, 

p.  Ofi, 

D 


50 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LITERATURE 


with  xxvi.  19),  consisting  of  a  solemn  declaration  of  the  con¬ 
sequences  to  follow  its  observance  or  neglect. 

Ch.  xxix.  2-xxx.  20. — Moses’  third  discourse,  embracing  (1)  the 
establishment  of  a  fresh  covenant  between  the  people  and  God 
(ch.  xxix.) ;  (2)  the  promise  of  restoration,  even  after  the  abandon¬ 
ment  threatened  in  ch.  xxviii.,  if  the  nation  should  then  exhibit 
due  tokens  of  penitence  (xxx.  1-10) ;  the  choice  set  before  Israel 
(xxx.  11-20). 

Ch.  xxxi.  1-13.  — Moses’  farewell  to  the  people,  and  commission 
of  Joshua.  His  delivery  of  the  Deuteronomic  law  to  the  levitical 
priests. 

Ch.  xxxi.  14i-xxxii.  47. — The  Song  of  Moses  with  accompanying 
historical  notices. 

Ch.  xxxii.  \^.-xxxiv.  12. — Conclusion  of  the  whole  Book  con¬ 
taining  the  Blessing  of  Moses,  and  describing  the  circumstances 
of  his  death. 

The  general  Character  of  the  Book. — Deuteronomy  is 
utterly  unlike  the  other  Pentateuchal  books.  It  possesses 
a  marked  individuality^  and  a  character  of  its  own  which 
at  once  remove  it  from  tlie  category  of  mere  compila¬ 
tions  made  up  of  excerpts  drawn  from  pre-existent 
sources.  Its  literary  independence  is  clear.  "We  no 
longer  have  to  do  with  a  narrative  which  can  he  analysed 
into  strata  derived  from  JE  and  P/  hut  with  a  work 
which  throughout  is  marked  hy  a  characteristic  style  and 
phraseology,  and  is  dominated  by  a  single  purpose. 
The  Book  in  its  present  form,  as  modern  criticism  has 
tended  to  show,  is  probably  not  the  product  of  a  single 
pen,  but  rather  an  expansion  of  an  original  work  which 
is  embedded  within  it.  But  whatever  expansion  has 
taken  place  is  almost  wholly  Deuteronomic  in  character, 
and  is  conceived  in  and  reflects  the  spirit  of  the  original 
writing. 

While  the  vocabulary  of  Deuteronomy  presents  but  few  excej)- 
tional  words,  its  phraseology  shows  very  distinct  features.  Words 
and  phrases  recur  with  remarkable  frequency  and  stamp  the  book 
throughout  with  a  peculiar  character.  This  is  so  marked  that  a 
Deuteronomic  colouring  can  at  once  be  detected  where,  in  later 
writings,  the  influence  of  the  Deuteronomic  school  has  made 
itself  felt.  One  or  two  examples  may  be  cited  here  : — - 


1  Only  xxxii.  48-52  and  xxxiv.  la  8-9  can  be  deduced  certainly 
from  P  ;  xxxiv.  15-7  shows  traces  of  J’s  influence  ;  and  xxxi.  14- 
15,  23  goes  back  probably  to  an  Elohistic  basis. 

2  For  a  full  list  cf.  Driver,  L.O.T.,  ])p.  91  ff.  (also  his  Com¬ 

mentary  on  Deuteronomy). 


THE  HEXATEUCH 


51 


To  love  (with  God  as  object),  vi.  5,  vii,  9,  etc.  (a  characteristic 
principle  of  Deuteronomy);  a  2'>coplc  of  special  jjossession  (‘a 
peculiar  people  ’),  vii.  6,  xiv.  2,  xxvi.  18 ;  A  mighty  hand  and 
stretched  out  arm  (combination  first  on  Deuteronomy)  iv.  34,  v.  1.5, 
etc.  ;  that  I  thy  God  may  bless  thee,  xiv.  14,  20,  etc.  ;  with  all 
thy  heart  and  with  all  thy  soul,  iv.  29,  vi.  5  ( ‘  a  genuine  expression 
of  the  spirit  of  the  book.’ — Driver). 

Composition  and  Authorship. — It  is  generally  agreed  by 
scholars  that  the  ^Book  of  the  law’  which  was  discovered 
by  Hilkiah  in  the  Temple  in  the  eighteenth  year  of  King 
Josiah  (G21  n.c.)^  and  which  exercised  so  momentous  an 
influence  on  the  reforming  movement  that  followed 
{cf.  II.  Kings  xxii. -xxiii.),  was  identical  with  some  form  of 
Deuteronomy.  The  question  arises  how  much — if  at  all 
— earlier  than  C21  b.c.  was  the  Book  composed.^  And 
in  what  relation  does  our  present  Deuteronomy  stand  to 
the  Book  found  by  Hilkiah? 

In  the  space  at  our  command  it  is  only  possible  to 
indicate  the  probable  answers  to  these  questions.  Full 
discussion  of  the  points  involved  must  be  sought  else¬ 
where.  The  Book  probably  emanated  from  the  circle  of 
the  pious,  who  cherished  the  ideals  of  prophets,  during 
the  heathen  reaction  under  Manasseh.  The  whole  spirit 
and  teaching  of  the  Book  presuppose  the  work  of  the 
prophets  of  the  eighth  and  seventh  centuries  b.c.  The 
Book  of  Deuteronomy  itself  represents  an  alliance 
between  prophecy  and  priesthood.  The  Book  read  by 
Hilkiah  was  probably  a  shorter  form  of  our  present 
Deuteronomy  (it  was  read  through  twice  in  quick  succes¬ 
sion  in  a  single  day).  VThen  carefully  studied,  also,  our 
present  Deuteronomy  shows  marks  of  having  been  ex¬ 
panded.^  Probably  the  original  Deuteronomy  contained 
the  kernel  of  the  legislative  section  (ch.  xii.-xxvi.)  to¬ 
gether  with  an  introduction  and  conclusion  [the  present 
Book  is  furnished  with  two  longintroductions  in  ch.  i.-xi.]. 

The  relation  of  the  Deuteroiiomic  Law-Code  (xii.-xxvi.)  with  the 
legislation  of  P  and  JE  is  set  forth  in  detail  by  Driver  (op.  cit. 
pp.  68  ff.).  It  has  close  affinities  with  the  legislation  embodied 
in  the  Book  of  the  Covenant  (Ex.  xx. -xxiii.),  and  is  in  several 
features  parallel  to  that  in  H  (Lev.  xvii.-xxvi.).  There  are  also 
allusions  to  laws  which  are  codified  in  some  parts  of  P ;  but  no 
trace  of  any  direct  dependence  upon  P  can  be  said  to  exist. 


^  Cf.  Coriiill,  op.  cit.  pp.  50  ff. 


52 


OLD  TESTAMENT  Ll'l'ERATURE 


It  cannot  be  disputed  that  the  Book  claims  to  be  the 
testament  of  Moses  himself,  who  is  represented  as  deliver¬ 
ing-  the  discourses,  which  include  the  Law-Code,  on  the 
borders  of  the  promised  land.  Must  it,  then,  be  regarded 
as  a  literary  fraud  ?  This  question  can  be  answered  with¬ 
out  hesitation  in  the  negative.  The  original  Deuteronomy, 
according  to  recent  criticism,  was  simply  a  recast  and  a 
rewritten  form  of  the  legislation  of  the  Book  of  the 
Covenant  (Ex.  xx.-xxiii.),  which  originally  occupied  in  E 
the  place  now  occupied  by  Deuteronomy  in  regard  to  the 
rest  of  the  Pentateuch  ;  i.e.  the  Book  of  the  Covenant 
was,  at  first,  associated  not  with  Horeb,  but  with  the 
plains  of  Moab.  The  author  of  Deuteronomy  believed  this 
to  be  the  work  of  Moses.  In  recasting  Ci  collection  of 
legislation,  traditionally  handed  down  to  him  as  Mosaic, 
in  the  form  of  a  freely  composed  speech  of  Moses,  he  only 
did  what  all  historical  writers  have  done,  and  to  S])eak  of 
his  work  as  a  literary  fraud  is  out  of  the  question  ;  indeed, 
D  cannot  rightly  be  described  even  as  pseudepigraphic.’ ^ 

The  Influence  of  Deuteronomy. — Too  much  stress  must 
not  be  laid  upon  Deuteronomy  as  a  code  of  Law.  It  is 
something  much  more  than  this.  Its  true  inwardness  is  a 
profound  ethical  and  religious  spirit  which  finds  manifold 
expression  and  which  determines  the  character  of  the 
entire  contents,  including  the  Law-Code  itself.  Thus 
obedience  to  the  prescribed  duties  is  to  be  the  spontaneous 
outcome  of  the  heart,  which  is  filled  with  a  passionate 
devotion  to  God,  and  not  the  result  of  fear  or  dread  of 
punishment.  Love  to  God  is  set  forth  in  Deuteronomy 
as  the  all-compelling  motive  of  right  action  and  right 
conduct.  The  whole  range  of  human  duty  and  prescribed 
service  is  thus  spiritualised  and  deepened. 

The  high  ethical  and  religious  power  with  which  the 
Book  is  pervaded  explains  the  profound  influence 
exercised  by  it  on  later  writings.  Its  characteristic 
phraseology*  was  readily  adopted  by  subsequent  writers, 
and  its  influence  is  manifest  on  parts  of  Joshua,  Judges, 
and  Kings.  Jeremiah’s  phraseology  also  shows  abundant 
marks  of  Deuteronomic  influence,  which  can  also  be 
traced  in  Ezekiel  and  Deutero-Isaiah.  [The  literary  im¬ 
plications  of  Deuteronomy  imply  acquaintance  with  JE, 


^  Cornill,  op.  cit.  p.  64. 


THE  HEXATEUCH 


68 


hui  not  with  P  :  thus  Deuteronomy  as  JE  regularly  speaks 
of  Horebj  not  of  Sinai :  Horeb  is  never  used  by  P.  See 
furtlier  on  this  point  Driver,  pp.  7b  ff.  ;  Cornill,  pp.  (h)  ff. 
b'or  Deut.  xxxii.  (^Song  of  Moses  ’)  and  xxxiii.  Blessing 
of  Moses’),  6*/’.  p.  54  f.] 


§  Cn,  Special  Passages  in  the  Pentateuch. 

1.  The  ‘Blessing  of  Jacob’  (Gen.  xlix.  15-27). — This 
poem  belongs  probably  to  the  oldest  stratum  of  the 
Hexateuch,  viz.  J,  and  the  terminus  a  quo  for  its  literary 
formation  will  be  c.  850  ilc. 

The  subject  of  the  poem  is  the  tribes  who  are  repre¬ 
sented  by  their  eponymous  ancestors,  the  sons  of  Jacob. 
‘As  often  elsewhere  in  Genesis  {e.g.  xvi.  12,  xxv.  28, 
xxvii.  28  f.),  the  tribe  is  conceived  as  impersonated  in  its 
ancestor,  and  the  ancestor  foreshadows  the  character  of 
the  tribe.’  ^  The  tribes  are  passed  in  review  and  their 
various  merits  and  demerits  appraised.  The  poet  places 
these  estimates  in  the  mouth  of  Jacob.  (In  a  similar 
way,  in  the  Song  of  Deborah  [Judg.  v.]  and  the  ‘  Blessing 
of  Moses  ’  [Deut.  xxxiii.],  the  tribes  are  passed  in  review. 
These  should  be  compared.) 

2.  The  Red-Sea  Song  (Ex.  xv.),  which  belongs  to  E,  may 
in  its  original  form  have  been  incorporated  from  an  older 
source,  ‘perhaps  from  a  collection  of  national  poems.’ 
It  has  apparently  undergone  some  expansion  {cf.  ver.  18-  - 
thou  hast  guided  me  ;  and  ver.  175,  which  points  to  some 
fixed  abode  of  the  ark,  probably  the  Solomonic  Temple). 
Dillmann  and  Delitzsch  agree  with  Ewald  in  supposing 
that  a  Mosaic  theme  contained  in  ver.  15-3  has  been 
amplified  later.  Driver,  however  {L.O.T.,  p.  27), 
regards  the  greater  part  of  the  song  as  Mosaic,  and 
thinks  ‘  the  modification  or  expansion  is  limited  to  the 
closing  verses.’  Sievers,  on  metrical  grounds,  regards 
the  original  song  as  ending  with  ver.  12,  and  considers 
vers.  14-18  to  be  theuork  of  a  later  hand.  M‘Neile 
{Exodus,  p.  89  ff.)  regards  ver.  1  as  old  (J),  while  vers.  2- 
18  belong  to  a  much  later  date. 

8.  The  little  Songs  in  Numb,  xxi, —  In  Numh.  xxi.  145- 
15,  175-18,  and  275-30,  we  have  three  song-fragments 

1  Driver,  Genesis,  p.  379.  ^  Driver,  L.O.T.,  p.  27. 


54 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LITERATURE 


which  are  obviously  of  a  venerable  character  (notice 
ver.  14  cites  from  the  Book  of  the  Wars  of  Jahveh).  The 
traditional  text  is  unfortunately  mutilated.  (1)  Vers. 
145-15,  containing  some  geographical  data,  cannot  be 
elucidated  with  certainty;  (2)  Vers.  175-18  is  the  so- 
called  ^  Song  of  the  IV^ell’  (read  with  Budde  the  last 
clause  of  ver.  18,  from  the  wilderness  a  gift  instead  of 
‘  and  from  the  wilderness  (they  journeyed)  to  Matranah’). 
Wellhausen,  however,  interprets  the  song  allegorically 
of  the  conquest  of  the  Moabite  town  Beer  (=  Well). 
(3)  The  longer  third  song,  vers.  275-30,  is  regarded  by 
several  modern  scholars  as  originally  only  the  celebra¬ 
tion  of  some  victory  of  Israel  over  Moab.  All  three 
songs  must  have  been  incorporated  by  E  from  an  older 
source  (the  Book  of  the  Wars  of  Jahveh  mentioned  above), 
and  appear  already  to  have  been  incomprehensible  to 
liim  (from  their  great  antiquity).  They  are  fragments 
of  the  ancient  popular  poetry  of  Israel. 

4.  The  ‘  Song  ’  and  the  ‘  Blessing  ’  of  Moses  (Deut.  xxxii. 
and  xxxiii.).  —  {a)  By  earlier  critical  scholars  the  so-called 
Song  of  Moses  xxxii.)  was  supposed  to  have  been 

incorporated  into  JE  (to  which  source  xxxi.  14-23  and 
xxxii.  44  were  assigned)  by  the  compiler  who  already 
found  it  attributed  to  Moses.  On  this  view  its  internal 
evidence  would  suggest  a  date  some  time  in  the  reign  of 
Jehoash  or  Jeroboam  ir.  (c.  780  b.c.),  when  Israel  had 
long  been  harassed  l)y  the  Syrians  (so  Knol)el,  Schrader, 
Dillmann,  etc.).  But  the  general  character  of  the 
^Song’  makes  this  view  exceedingly  difficult  to  sustain, 
^  It  is  now  abundantly  clear  that  the  Song,  though  marked 
by  many  peculiarities  in  expression,  yet  cannot  claim 
any  originality  in  thought ;  it  is  largely  a  compendium 
of  the  prophetic  theology  steeped  from  end  to  end  in 
reminiscences  of  the  older  prophets.’^  It  may  be 
regarded  as  ‘  a  prophetic  meditation  on  the  lessons  to  be 
deduced  from  Israel’s  national  history’  written,  perhaps, 
in  tlie  age  of  Jeremiah  and  Ezekiel  (so  Driver). 

(5)  In  the  ‘Blessing  of  Moses’  (Deut.  xxxiii.)  we  have 
a  far  more  ancient  composition.  It  is  parallel  in  form  to 
the  Blessing  of  Jacob  ’  (Gen.  xlix.),  though  clearly 

1  Cornill,  op.  cit.  p.  124  (Cornill  places  the  composition  of  the 
‘  Song  ’  not  earlier  than  the  end  of  the  Babjdonian  Exile). 


THE  HEXATEUCH 


55 


younger  tluin  the  latter  (notice  the  tribe  of  Simeon  has 
vanished,  Reuben  barely  survives,  and  Levi  has  become 
the  priestly  tribe).  The  author  appears  to  have  been 
a  North-1  sraelite,  and  the  glorification  of  Joseph  (ver. 
17)  suggests  a  prosperous  period,  like  the  reign  of 
Jeroboam  ii.,  as  the  time  of  the  original  composition. 

It  is  not  improbably  the  poetical  embellishment  of  some 
series  of  utterances  ascribed  by  popular  tradition  to 
Moses.  It  is  preceded  by  an  exordium  (vers.  2-5)  and 
followed  by  a  conclusion  (vers.  2G-29)  which  are  as¬ 
signed  by  some  critics  to  a  later  date  than  the  main  body 
of  the  poem  (vers.  G-25). 

5.  The  two  Decalogues  and  the  Book  of  the  Covenant 
(Ex*.  XX.  2-17  and  xxxiv.  10-20  ;  Ex.  xxi.-xxiii).— It  is 
doubtful  whether  the  so-called  Second  Decalogue  (Ex. 
xxxiv.  10-20)  which  belongs  to  J  is  really,  in  any  sense, 
parallel  to  the  moral  Decalogue  in  Ex.  xx.  2-17  (E).  It 
is  more  probably  a  fragment  of  a  collection  ot  covenant 
laws  which  (in  j)  correspond  to  Ex,  xxi.-xxiii.  (E),  the 
Book  of  the  Covenant. 

The  Decalogue  proper  (Ex.  xx.  2-lp  belongs  iii  its 
present  form  to  the  younger  element  in  E.  But  in  an 
earlier  form  it  goes  back,  doubtless,  to  a  far  greater 
antiquity,  possibly,  as  has  recently  been  argued  afresh,^ 
to  Moses  himself.  In  Deut.  (v.  0-21)  a  duplicate  version, 
of  it  (with  variations),  as  is  well  known,  stands  at  the 
head  of  the  Horeb-legislation. 

As  has  already  been  pointed  out  above.  The  Book  of  the 
Covenant  {Ex.  xx.  20-xxiii.),  which  belongs  to  E,  consists  of 
two  masses  of  legislation  :  («)  a  series  called  judgments 
{inishpdthn^=Ex.  xxi.  l-xxii.-]7  (3'  collection  of  civil 
case-law),  and  (5)  a  series  of  regulations  regaidmg 
worship  and  religious  festivals  =  xx.  22-20,  xxii.  29-o0, 
xxiii.  10-19  (to  which  series  xxxiv.  10-20  J  [the  Second 
Decalogue ’]  is  parallel).  Not  improbably  this  Book  of 
the  Covenant  ’  was  originally  preceded  by  a  speech  which 
we  now  read  in  Josh.  xxiv.  (in  its  original  form  from  E), 
and  which  is  designed  to  form  an  introduction  to  a  con¬ 
cluding  covenant  immediately  following  it.  It  has 

1  In  a  striking  paper,  printed  in  the  J ournal  of  Theological 
Studies  (April  1908),  by  Dr.  C.  F.  Burney,  entitled  A  Theory  of 
the  Development  of  Israelite  Religion  in  early  Times,  lor  a 
different  point  of  view  cf.  M‘Neile,  Exodus,  pp.  Ivi-lxiv. 


56 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LITERATURE 


already  been  pointed  out  that,  according-  to  one  plausible 
conjecture,  the  ^Book  of  the  Covenant,'  i.e.  Josh.  xxiv.  + 
Ex.  XX.  20-xxiii.  (in  a  more  original  form)  stood  in  con¬ 
nection  with  Moses’  last  public  appearance  in  the  ‘  plains 
of  Moab’;  that  Deuteronomy  is  a  rewritten  form  of 
this  ;  and  that  to  make  room  for  Deuteronomy  the  Book 
of  the  Covenant  was  displaced  and  connected  with  the 
Horeb-legislation  in  Exodus. 

6.  The  Melchizedek  Narrative  (Gen.  xiv.). — This  narra¬ 
tive  stands  in  complete  isolation  in  the  Pentateuch. 
It  cannot  he  assigned  to  any  of  the  sources  JE  or  P. 
Its  composition  cannot  well  be  placed  before  the 
Exile,  and  may  well  be  later.  Can  it  be  regarded  as 
historical.^  The  answer  to  this  question  must  depend 
to  some  extent  upon  the  impression  produced  by  the 
narrative  itself.  Certainly  no  external  evidence  from 
the  inscriptions  has  yet  come  to  hand  which  can  be 
adduced  in  support  of  its  historicity.  There  are  features 
which  suggest  that  it  is  of  the  nature  of  a  midrash — a 
freely  composed  piece  with  a  didactic  aim,  e.g.  the  number 
318  (for  Abram's  servants)  may  have  been  derived  by 
^gematria’  from  the  sum  of  the  numerical  values  of  the 
name  Eliezer  (1  +  80  + 10  +  70  +  7  +  200  =  318).  The  anti¬ 
quarian  air,  too,  of  the  opening  verses  suggests,  rather, 
a  learned  interest  of  an  archaeological  kind,  such  as  a 
Jew  living  in  Babylonia  in  post-exilic  times  might  have 
cultivated.  If  this  view  is  correct,  Gen.  xiv.  will  be  a 
very  late  composition  which  was  inserted  into  the  text 
of  the  Pentateuch  after  its  completion.  ^The  outline  of 
the  narrative  may  still  be  historical.’  ^ 

§  65.  Joshua. 

Title  and  Contents. — The  Book  of  Joshua  is  so  called 
after  the  name  of  the  hero  whose  exploits  it  is  largely 
concerned  with. 

The  Book  naturally  falls  into  two  parts  : — 

(1)  Ch.  i.-xii.,  the  history  of  the  conquest  of  Palestine 
west  of  the  Jordan,  and  (2)  ch.  xiii.-xxiv.,  the  division 
and  settlement  of  the  conquered  territory. 

Analysis  and  Sources  of  the  Book. — The  narrative  part  of 

1  See  the  matter  jxxdicially  summed  iqj  in  Driver’s  Genesis, 

pp.  171  if. 


THE  HEXATEUCH 


57 


the  Pentateuch  is  completed  by  the  history  of  events  set 
forth  in  the  Book  of  Joshua.  In  the  latter  the  story  is 
carried  to  its  appropriate  climax — the  crowning  of  Moses' 
work  in  the  conquest  of  the  Promised  Land  by  his 
successor.  The  documentary  sources  which  are  com¬ 
bined  in  the  Pentateuchal  Books — JE  and  P — also 
reappear  in  this  book^  but  not  exactly  in  the  same  way. 
It  is  doubtful  whether  J  and  E  have  been  used  inde¬ 
pendently.  These  sources  appear  rather  to  have  been 
utilised  in  a  combined  and  expanded  form,  which  is,  of 
course,  younger.  Further,  this  form  of  JE  in  Joshua, 
before  it  was  combined  with  P,  seems  clearly  to  have 
undergone  revision  by  a  Deuteronomic  editor  (R^)  who 
is  responsible  for  certain  Deuteronomic  additions  to  the 
JE  narrative.  These  additions  are  chiefly  concerned  in 
demonstrating  Joshua’s  zeal  in  carrying  out  Mosaic 
ordinances,  especially  the  command  to  extirpate  the 
Canaanite  population.  As  a  matter  of  fact,  the  actual 
conquest  appears  to  have  been  accomplished  much  more 
slowly  and  gradually  than  this  writer  imagined. 

In  detail  the  analysis  of  the  Book  is  as  follows : — 

(i)  Ch.i.-xii.  (here  P  rarely  appears) :  ch.  i.-ii.  (i.  and  ii.  10-11 
;  the  rest  of  ii.,  viz.  vers.  1-9  and  12-24  JE):  preparations  for 

the  crossing  of  the  Jordan — Joshua  encouraged  by  God— the  help 
of  the  2^  tribes  promised;  ch.  iii.-iv.  (JE4-Ri>-1-P  ;  the  latter 

iv.  13,  19) :  the  passage  of  the  Jordan  and  erection  of  com¬ 
memorative  stones  at  Gilgal ;  ch.  v.-viii.  (JE  +  Ri>  +  P  ;  the  latter 

v.  10-12,  vii.  1) :  Joshua  circumcises  the  people  at  Gilgal — the 
Passover  kept — commands  as  to  conquest  of  Jericho — the  city  is 
taken  and  devoted — the  expedition  against  Ai  and  the  sin  of 
Achan — capture  of  the  city  by  a  stratagem  ;  ch.  ix.  (JE-t-R^-i-P ; 
the  latter  ix.  156,  17-21) :  the  stratagem  of  the  Gibeonites  ;  ch.  x. 
(JE  +  Rd)  :  conquest  of  Southern  Canaan— defeat  of  the  five  kings 
at  Beth-horon — Joshua’s  other  successes;  ch.  xi.  (mainly  Ri>) : 
conquest  of  Northern  Canaan — defeat  of  Jabin,  king  of  Hazor, 
and  his  allies  at  the  waters  of  Merom — review  of  J oshua’s  entire 
series  of  successes  ;  ch.  xii.  (Ri’) :  a  supplementary  list  of  the 
kings  defeated  by  Israel  (Sihon  and  Og  on  East  Jordan,  and 
thirty-one  kings  slain  under  Joshua  in  AYest  Palestine). 

(ii)  Oil.  xiii.-xxiv. — The  allotment  of  the  land. — Ch.  xiii. 
(R»  vers,  1-12,  14,  33 ;  P  vers.  15-32,  nearly  all ;  JE  ver.  13) : 
Joshua  is  commissioned  to  allot  the  land  AY.  of  the  Jordan 
among  the  9J  tribes — the  region  E.  of  the  Jordan  allotted  to  the 
9.\  tribes  is  exactly  defined ;  ch.  xiv.  (P  vers.  1-5 ;  JE  expanded 
by  Rd  vers,  6-15) :  bestowal  of  Hebron  upon  Caleb ;  ch.  xv. 
(P  vers.  1-13,  20-44,  48-62  ;  JE  vers.  14-19,  43-47,  63) :  the  borders 
of  Judah — the  conquest  of  Hebron  and  Kirjath-Sepher — the  cities 


58 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LITERATURE 


of  Judah;  ch.  xvi.-xvii.  (JE  +  P:  mainly  JE) :  Ephraim  and 
Manasseh  (their  borders) ;  ch.  xviii.  (P  vers.  1,  11-28 :  JE  vers. 
2-6,  8-10 ;  Rd  ver.  7) :  erection  of  the  sanctuary  at  Shiloh  and  the 
assembly  there — the  rest  of  the  land  is  surveyed,  divided  into 
seven  portions  and  allotted.  Benjamin’s  territory ;  ch.  xix.  (P  vers. 
1-8,  10-46,  48,  51 ;  JE  vers.  9,  47,  49-50) :  the  territory  assigned 
to  Simeon,  Zebulun,  Issachar,  Asher,  Naphtali,  and  Dan.  Joshua 
obtains  Timnath-serah  ;  ch.  xx.  (P  vers.  1-3,  6a,  7-9 ;  vers.  4-5, 
66) :  appointment  of  six  cities  of  refuge  ;  ch.  xxi.  (P  vers.  1-42 ; 
Rd  vers.  43-45) :  48  cities  assigned  to  the  tribe  of  Levi ;  ch.  xxii. 
(P  in  a  much  revised  form,  vers.  9-34;  Ro  vers.  1-6  (7-8?):  the 
2|  tribes  dismissed  —  dispute  on  account  of  the  altar  erected 
by  them  at  point  where  they  crossed  the  Jordan;  ch.  xxiii. 
(Rd  mainly) ;  Joshua’s  farewell  exhortation  to  all  Israel  [a  later 
Deuteronomic  supplement  to  the  following  chapter,  xxiv.]; 
ch.  xxiv.  (E  vers.  1-lla,  llc-12,  14-30,  32-33;  R»  vers.  116,  13, 
31) :  meeting  at  Shechem — Joshua’s  farewell  speech,  and  the 
solemn  engagement  by  the  people  to  cling  to  Jahveh.  Joseph’s 
bones  buried  in  Shechem.  Joshua  and  Eleazar  die. 

The  analysis  of  the  Book  reveals  some  striking 
features.  In  the  first  twelve  chapters  P  almost  com¬ 
pletely  disappears,  but  in  the  last  twelve  is  prominent 
again.  The  work  of  the  Deuteronomic  revision  also 
plays  an  important  part.  In  some  cases  this  element  has 
displaced  older  material  (e.g.  in  ch.  i.).  This  has  an  im¬ 
portant  bearing  upon  the  question  of  the  historical  value 
of  different  parts  of  the  Book.  ^Historical  matter,  as 
such,  is  not  that  in  which  [the  Deuteronomic  editor]  is 
primarily  interested.’^  He  is  interested,  rather,  in 
Joshua  as  an  exponent  and  exemplar  of  Deuteronomic 
ideas.  He  tends  to  ‘^generalise  and  magnify’^  Joshua’s 
successes.  The  conquest,  in  point  of  fact,  was  not 
achieved  in  the  rapid  way  IU‘  supposed,  as  can  be  seen 
from  the  old  account  in  Judges  i.  In  the  second  part 
of  Joshua  P  presupposes  the  view  of  the  conquest  re¬ 
presented  by  lU^,  and  works  it  out  to  its  logical 
conclusions. 

The  analysis  of  the  sources  in  this  book  is  in  details 
uncertain.  There  appears  to  have  been  a  much  larger 
amount  of  revision  and  modification  than  in  the  Penta- 
teuchal  Books.  It  seems  probable  that  the  Joshua  part 
of  P  was  disjoined  from  the  part  embodied  in  the 
Pentateuch  ‘  well  before  the  time  of  Ezra’  (Cornill),  and 
has  been  much  more  freely  revised  than  the  latter. 

1  Driver,  L.O.T.,  p.  107.  2  jud. 


THE  HEXATEUCH 


59 


§  7.  The  Prophetical  and  Priestly  Narratives 

OP  THE  HexATEUCH. 

The  narrative  which  has  been  denominated  by  the 
symbol  JE  may,  in  contradistinction  to  P,  be  styled 
tiie  Prophetical  Narrative  of  the  Hexateucli.  The  ethical 
and  religious  standpoint  assumed  in  it  is  that  of  the 
jirophets. 

This  narrative,  as  the  symbol  JE  indicates,  is  in  the 
nature  of  a  compilation.  It  consists  of  excerpts  taken 
from  two  originally  distinct  and  independent  historical 
works,  wliich  surveyed  the  patriarchal  and  Mosaic 
history'^  from  two  distinct  (though  allied)  points  of  view. 
It  is  important  to  remember  that  only  excerpts  from 
these  narratives  have  been  preserved  in  the  compilation 
of  the  Hexateuch.  The  original  documents  are  no 
longer  extant  in  their  entirety. 

Criteria  distinguishing  J  and  E. — Are  we  justified  in 
assuming  the  existence  of  two  parallel  histories  dealing 
largely  with  the  same  subject-matter  and  from  sub¬ 
stantially  the  same  point  of  view?  Is  it  probable  that 
two  such  narratives,  largely  resembling  each  other, 
sliould  have  come  into  existence  at  an  early  period,  and 
later  have  been  fused  into  a  combined  form  ?  The 
answer  to  this  question  must  be  an  unhesitating  affirma¬ 
tive.  While  the  analysis  of  the  combined  narrative  JE 
into  its  original  elements  cannot,  in  jiarticular  cases, 
always  lie  determined  with  certainty  and  in  exact  detail, 
yet  there  are  a  considerable  number  of  cases  where  these 
documents  stand  out  in  clear  outline  and  in  unmistakable 
independence.  The  internal  evidence  of  JPl,  also,  neces¬ 
sitates  its  being  regarded  as  composite  in  structure. 

The  following  are  some  of  the  words  and  expressions  whi(#i 
are  characteristic  of  E  as  distinguished  from  J.^  E  prefers  God 
though  not  exclusively — and  angel  of  God  where  J 
prefers  Jahveh  and  angel  of  Jahveh ;  E  uses  Amoritc  as  the 
general  name  of  the  pre-Israelitish  inhabitants  of  Palestine,  while 
J  uses  Canaanite ;  E  uses  Horeb,  while  J  uses  Sinai ;  in  E  the 
name  of  Moses’  father-in-law  is  Jethro,  in  J  it  is  Hobab  ;  each  as  a 
rule  uses  a  different  Hebrew  word  for  bondwoman  (E  prefers  ’ama, 
J  shiphhd).  E  also  uses  uncommon  words  sometimes  {e.g. 

times,  Gen.  xxxi.  7,  41 ;  n'lHj  lo  rejoice,  Ex.  xviii.  9 ;  nin.  to  see 


1  Cf.  Driver,  Genesis,  p.  xiii. 


60 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LITERATURE 


— a  very  rare  word  in  prose,  etc.)-  J  has  a  preference  for  Israel 
as  the  personal  name  of  Jac^b  (while  E  prefei's  Jacob) ;  the  ex¬ 
pressions  Behold,  now  (Gen.  xii.  11,  xvi.  2,  etc.),  to  call  with  the 
name  of  Jahveh  (Gen.  iv.  26,  xii.  8,  etc.),  to  find  favour  in  the 
eyes  of,  are  some  of  those  characteristic  of  J. 

The  literary  Style  and  general  Character  of  the  Narratives 
of  J  and  E. — The  work  of  J  enshrines  the  masterpieces  of 
Hebrew  narrative-writing’.  In  power  of  vivid  portraiture, 
in  painting’  a  scene  from  the  life,  J  is  unsurpassed.  With 
a  few  bold  strokes  he  makes  the  picture  live  before  our 
eyes.  He  never  overloads  the  narrative  with  detail,  and 
his  w’l’iting  is  invested  with  the  charm  of  spontaneity. 
There  is  not  a  trace  in  it  of  conscious  art  (cf.,  e.g.,  Gen. 
xxiv.,  xliv.  ;  both  J). 

E  possesses  less  literary  power.  He  has  not  so  great 
a  command  of  language,  nor  the  wonderful  pow’er  of 
vivid  representation  and  delineation  that  so  strikingly 
characterises  the  writing  of  J.  But  he  can  compose 
graceful  and  pathetic  narratives  w  hich  are  not  unworthy 
to  stand  by  the  side  of  those  of  J.^  In  the  Book  of 
Genesis  both  J  and  E  linger  long  over  the  sacred  sites 
and  antiquities  of  Palestine  which,  in  popular  tradition, 
w'ere  bound  up  with  sacred  memories  of  the  nation’s 
ancestors,  the  patriarchs.  The  standpoint  of  E  is  dis¬ 
tinctively  the  prophetical.  He  calls  Abraham  a  ^  prophet,’ 
and  pictures  him  as  interceding,  like  a  prophet,  effectu¬ 
ally  with  God  (Gen.  xx.  7).  Moses,  too,  is  invested  by 
him  with  a  prophet’s  character  and  mission  (Ex.  iii.), 
and  is  represented  as  holding  intimate  communion  with 
God  (Ex.  xxxiii.  11  ;  Numb.  xii.  G-8).  hlis  tone  is  some¬ 
times  consciously  didactic  (cf. ,  e.g.,  Gen.  1.  20,  the  moral 
of  the  Joseph-history).  Another  striking  characteristic 
of  E  is  his  fondness  for  dwelling  upon  dreams  as  a 
channel  of  revelation  {cf.  Gen.  xxviii.  11  f.,  xxxi.  10  f., 
xl.-xli.,  etc.).  The  standpoint  of  J  is,  also,  prominently 
prophetical.  Mndeed,  his  characteristic  features  may 
be  said  to  be  the  fine  vein  of  ethical  and  theologi¬ 
cal  reflexion  which  })ervades  his  w'ork  throughout, 
and  the  manner  in  which  his  narrative,  even  more  than 
that  of  E,  becomes  the  vehicle  of  religious  teaching’ 
(Driver). 

1  Good  examples  of  E’s  narration  can  be  seen  in  Gen.  xxii.  (the 
sacrifice  of  Isaac)  and  xl.-xlii.  (in  the  composite  Joseph-narrative). 


61 


THE  HEXATEUCII 


J  traces  tlie  origin  of  sin  and  evil  in  the  world  (Gen.  ii.-iy., 
vi.  1-8),  God’s  providential  work  in  counteracting  the  ruin  of  the 
human  race  by  choosing  out  special  men  and  a  special  race  to 
])Ccoine  His  possession  upon  the  earth.  A  noticeable  feature  oi 
J  is  his  representations  of  the  Deity,  which  are  highly  anthiopo- 
morphic.  (Thus  God  cotncs  down  to  see  the  tower  of  Gabel,  visits 
the  earth  in  visible  form,  cf.  Gen.  xviii.-xix. ;  meets  Moses  and 
seeks  to  slay  him.  Ex.  iv.  24,  etc. ) 

Dates  of  Composition  of  J  and  E,  and  their  later 
Revision. -  The  work  of  E  is  g^enerally  regarded  by 
scholars  as  being  of  Nortb-lsraelitisb  origin.  Its  autlior 
was  an  Epbraimite  (notice  especially  bis  interest  in 
Joseph,  who  is  the  royal  figure  among  bis  brothers,  and 
in  the  holy  places  of  Joseph — Bethel,  Shecliem,  and 
Beersheha  :  the  last  much  visited  by  Israelites,  cf.  Amos, 
V.  5,  viii.  14).  E’s  narrative  thus  belonging  to  the 
northern  kingdom,  suggests  a  time  for  its  com])osition 
when  the  national  life  ofthe  latter  was  vigorous,  probably 
within  the  reign  of  Jeroboam  ii.,  c.  750  b.c. 

The  narrative  of  J  suggests  the  work  of  a  Judmaii 
writer  (though  some  scholars,  as  Schrader  and  Ivuenen, 
would  assign  it  equally  with  E  to  the  northern  kingdom). 
Notice  J  represents  Abraham  as  dwelling  in  Hebron 
instead  of  Beersheha,  and  in  the  story  of  Joseph  makes 
Judah  (not  IleiThen)  the  spokesman  of  the  brothers.  Jf 
J  was  Judean,  the  oldest  part  of  his  work  probably  was 
formed  in  the  reign  of  Jehoshaphat,  c.  850  b.c. 

j47’C  the  ncii’vtttivefi  of  E  (ind  J  to  be  vegcivded  cis  ccieh  on 
cssentiul  litevoi’ii  unity  ?  Within  our  limits  this  question 
cannot  he  discussed.  According  to  some  modern  scholars 
(Kuenen,  Cornill,  etc.)  we  must  distinguish  between  the 
original  work  of  E  (  =  EJ)  750  b.c.  and  a  revision  of  this 
made  about  one  hundred  years  later  (G50  b.c.  =E2). 
Similarly  J  is  regarded  as  being  not  a  literary  unity  by 
many  scholars. 

The  work  of  P  offers  a  striking  contrast  in  every  way 
to  the  histories  of  J  and  E.  It  surveys  the  past  from  a 
different  point  of  view--the  priestly— and  throughout  is 
pervaded  by  an  ecclesiastical  rather  than  a  human  in¬ 
terest.  Interest  is  concentrated  upon  the  origin  of 
institutions  which  have  a  theocratic  character  or  import¬ 
ance.  Otherwise  P  in  the  patriarchal  history  appears 
to  be  content  with  a  bare  outline  baldly  enumerating 


62 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LITERATURE 


persons  and  events.  The  same  metliods  distinguish  P’s 
narrative  when  it  deals  with  the  Mosaic  age.  Moses 
commission  and  tlie  narrative  of  the  Exodus  "are  treated 
with  a  certain  amount  of  fulness^  but  only  the  tabernacle 
and  the  cultus  are  described  in  minute  detail. 

Characteristics  of  P’s  Writing. — P’s  work  is  distinguished 
by  careful  systematisation.  It  is  above  all  things  logical 
and  precise.  There  is  a  carefully  constructed  chrono¬ 
logy,  and  the  narrative  develops  in  accordance  with  a 
well-defined  plan,  and  by  definite  stages.^  Genealogies 
and  genealogical  lists  are  a  great  feature.  P’s  repre¬ 
sentations  of  God  are  less  anthropomorphic  than  those  of 
J  and  even  E.  All  mention  of  angels  and  dreams  is 
avoided.  Ihe  style  of  P  is  marked  by  striking  peculiari¬ 
ties.  In  strong  contrast  with  that’ of  J  and  E  it  is 
^stereotyped,  measured,  and  prosaic.’  Fixed  formulas 
are  constantly  employed,  and  the  same  expressions  are 
constantly  repeated. 

The  following  are  some  of  P’s  characteristic  cxi)ressions  2  :  n'otl 
is  uniformly  used  from  Gen.  i.  1  to  Ex.  vi.  2  (except  Gen.  xvii.  1 
xxi.  16);  kind  (Gen.  i.  11,  12 ;  Lev.  xi.  14,  15,  10,  19)  to  s?varm, 
(Gen.  1.  20,  21 ;  vii.  21) :  this  self-same  day  (Gen.  vii.  13  and 
often) :  substance  (Heb,  TckUsh),  Gen.  xii.  5,  etc.  :  throughout 
your  {their)  generations,  Gen.  xvii.  7,  9:  people = kinsfolk  {that 
soul  shall  he  cut  off  from  his  people,  Gen.  xvii.  14=:=  Ex.  xxx.  33, 
etc.) ;  between  the  two  evenings  (Ex.  xii.  6,  etc.). 

Date  of  P’s  Formation. — A  number  of  arguments  go  to 
show  that  the  Priests’  Code  cannot  have  been  formed 
until  after  the  age  of  Ezekiel.  Earlier  literature  (in¬ 
cluding  Deuteronomy)  shows  no  proof  of  acquaintance 
with  it,  and  the  earlier  legislation  is  often  in  conflict  with 
it.  ^The  Priests’  Code  embodies  some  elements  with 
which  the  earlier  literature  is  in  harmony,  and  which 
indeed  it  presupposes ;  it  embodies  other  elements  with 
which  the  same  literature  is  in  conflict,  and  the  existence 
of  which  it  even  seems  to  preclude.  This  double  aspect 
of  the  Priests’  Code  is  reconciled  hy  the  supposition  that 

1  E.g.  God  is  revealed  under  three  distinct  names,  Elohim, 

El  Shaddai ,  awd  fTahvehi  there  are  three  successive  covenants 
with  Noah,  Abraham,  and  Israel,  each  with  its  special  sign,  the 
rainbow,  circumcision,  the  Sabbath  (Gen.  ix.  12  f.  xvii’ll* 
Ex.  xxxi.  13,  17),  etc.  ’  ’ 

2  Sec  the  full  list  in  Driver,  L.O.T.,  pp.  123-128. 


TUE  HEXATEDCH 


63 


the  chief  ceremonial  institutions  of  Israel  are  in  their 
origin  of  great  anti([uity  but  that  the  laws  lespecting 
them  were  gradually  developed  and  elaborated^  and  in 
the  sJuipe  in  which  they  are  formulated  in  the  Priests  Code 
that  they  belong  to  the  exilic  or  post-exilic  period.  In 
its  main  stock,  the  legislation  of  P  was  thus  not  (as  the 
critical  view  of  it  is  sometimes  represented  by  its  oppo¬ 
nents  as  teaching)  ^manufactured  '  by  the  priests  during 
the  exile  :  it  is  based  upon  pre-existing  Temple  usage.  .  .  . 
Hebrew  legislation  took  shape  gradually,  and  the  codes, 
of  JE  (Ex.  xx.-xxiii.,  xxxiv.  10  ff.),  Deuteronomy,  and  P 
represent  three  successive  phases  of  it.’  ^  P  was  probably 
formed  between  570  and  500  b.c. 

Later  Revision  of  P. — The  main  body  of  P  was  un¬ 
doubtedly  published  by  Ezra  in  444  b.c.  But  the  text 
appears  to  have  undergone  some  amplification  latei 
(subsequent  to  the  time  of  Ezra).  These  secondary  and 
younger  elements  are  denoted  by  Cornill  with  the 
symbol  P^. 

The  fact  that  the  LXX.  of  Ex.  xxxy.-xl.  exhibits  a  different 
recension  of  tlie  text  shows  tliRjt  I?  did  not  cissiinie  cV  fixed  ft/iid 
final  form  till  long  subsequent  to  the  time  of  Ezra. 


1  Driver,  L.O.T.,  pp.  135  ff. 


CHAPTER  II 


TIIF]  HISTORICAL  ROOKS  OUTSIDE  THE  HEXATEUCH 

Tjiterature.  Judges,  G.  F.  Moore  (I. C. 0.) :  also  in  the  smaller 
Cambridge  Bible  (by  J.  S.  Black):  Samuel,  by  H.  P.  Smith 
G.C.C.) :  Notes  on  the  Hebrew  Text  of  the  Book  of  Samuel,  by 
S.  B,.  Driver ;  Notes  on  the  Hebrew  Text  of  Kings,  by  0.  F. 
Burney  (1003) ;  Commentaries  on  Chronicles  by  Bennett  (1894) ; 
W.  E.  Barnes  (1900);  and  E.  L.  Curtis  (I.C.C.,  1910);  and  on 
Samuel,  H.  P.  Smith  (T. C.C.).  The  relevant  articles  in  the 
Bible  Dictionaries  (under  the  names  of  the  Biblical  Book),  and 
especially  the  article  Historical  Literature  in  Eneycl.  Bib.  Cf. 
also  G.  A.  Cooke,  The  History  and  Song  of  Deborah  (Claren¬ 
don  Press). 


§  1.  The  Book  of  Judges. 

Title  and  Contents. — The  Book  derives  its  name  ^  from 
tlie  national  heroes  whose  exploits  it  records.  It  falls 
into  three  well-defined  parts:  (1)  ch.  i.  l-ii.  5,  an  intro¬ 
ductory  survey  of  the  results  of  the  conquest  and  the 
state  of  the  land  when  the  period  of  the  Judges  begins  ; 
(2)  ch.  a.  6-/rvi.,  history  of  the  Judges  ;  and  (3)  ch.  xvii- 
xxi.,  an  appendix  describing  two  incidents  belonging  to 
the  period^  viz.  the  episode  of  Micah  and  the  emigration 
of  apart  of  the  tribe  of  Dan  to  the  North  (ch.  xvii.-xviii.)^ 
and  the  internal  war  between  the  rest  of  Israel  and 
Benjamin  owing  to  the  outrage  at  Gibeah  (ch.  xviii.- 
xxi. ). 

The  judges  who  are  the  subjects  of  notices  in  the  Book  are  13 
in  number  (or  rather  12,  excluding  Abimelech,  who  is  not  called 
a  ‘judge’),  viz.  Othniel  (iii.  7-11);  Ehud  (iii,  12-39);  Shamgar 


1  The  name  is  the  same  in  the  Hebrew  Canon  (D'’t:3Dti^)  as  in 
the  Greek  {Kpirai).  But  the  Hebrew  word  has  a  much  wider  sig¬ 
nification  than  ‘judge.’  It  means  not  only  judex  hut  vindex,  and 
was  applied  to  the  rulers  who  (before  the  rise  of  the  monarchy) 
governed  Israel  in  peace  and  championed  its  cause  in  war. 

C4 


HISTORICAL  BOOKS  OUTSIDE  HEXATEUCH  65 


(iii.  31);  Barak  [Deborah]  (ch.  iv,-v.) ;  Gideon  (vi.  1-viii.  32) ; 
[Abimelech]  (viii.  33-ix.  57);  Tola  (x.  1-2);  Jair  (x.  3-5); 
Jephthah  (x.  6-xii.  7);  Ibzan  (xii.  8-10);  Elon  (xii.  11-12); 
Abdon  (xii.  13-15),  Samson  (ch.  xiii.-xvi).  The  judges  as  to 
whom  only  brief  notices  are  given  are  sometimes  termed  ‘minor’ 
to  distinguish  them  from  the  others  who  are  called  ‘greater.’ 
The  former  include  Shamgar,  Tola,  Jair,  Ibzan,  Elon,  Abdon  ; 
the  latter  [Othniel]  Ehud,  Deborah-Barak,  Gideon,  Jephthah, 
and  Samson. 

Critical  Analysis  of  the  Book. — The  critical  analysis  of 
the  Book  involves  some  very  complicated  questions  which 
cannot  adequately  be  discussed  here.  When  critically 
examined  the  Book  shows  clear  traces  of  having  passed 
through  more  than  one  stage  before  it  attained  its 
present  form.  The  kernel  of  the  Book  is  the  central 
part  which  deals  with  the  history  of  the  judges  com¬ 
prised  in  iii.  7-xvi.  21,  to  which  ii.  G-iii.  6  forms  an  intro¬ 
ductory  section.  Here  it  is  at  once  clear  that  a  series  of 
older  narratives  has  been  fitted  into  a  framework,  which 
is  distinguished  by  the  regular  recurrence  in  it  of  a  fixed 
phraseology,  and  is  articulated  according  to  a  definite 
scheme.  The  framework  consistently  represents  a  view 
of  the  history  according  to  which  it  is  marked  by  a 
regular  movement  of  apostasy,  subjugation,  penitence, 
and  deliverance.  In  the  notices  prefixed  and  added  to 
the  histories  of  the  greater  judges  some  such  statement 
in  effect  regularly  appears  as  the  following :  the  people 
did  that  which  was  evil  in  the  sight  of  Jahveh  ;  Jahveh,  in 
consequence,  sold  them  or  delivered  them  into  the  hand  of 
an  enemy  ;  the  people  cried  unto  Jahveh  in  their  distress, 
who  sent  them  a  saviour ;  the  enemy  was  subdued  and 
the  land  had  rest  {cf  iii.  7,  8,  9, 11  ;  hi.  12,  15,  80 ;  iv.  1, 
2,  8,  28  ;  V.  815 ;  vi.  1,  65,  8,  28 ;  x.  6,  7,  10,  11,  885 ; 
xiii.  1,  16,  81  end).  This  element  is  marked  by  Deuter- 
onomic  phraseology  and  the  Deuteronomic  spirit,  and 
may  safely  be  attributed  to  a  Deuteronomic  redactor  or 
redaction  (R®).  The  hand  of  R^  is  clearly  manifest  in 
the  introductory  section  (ii.  6-iii.  6),  especially  in  ii.  11-19 ; 
but  the  entire  section  can  hardly  be  his  work  :  ii.  20-iii.  6 
belongs  to  an  older  stratum.  It  is  noteworthy,  also, 
that  no  trace  of  R“  can  be  detected  in  the  accounts  of 
the  minor  judges  in  ch.  x.  and  xii.,  or  in  the  history 
of  Abimelech  (viii.  83-ix.  57).  From  these  facts  the 
inference  has  been  drawn,  that  there  once  existed  a 


E 


66 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LITERATURE 


Deuteronomic  Book  of  Judges,  which  included  histories 
of  Othniel  and  the  five  greater  judges  (Ehud,  Deborah- 
Barak,  Gideon,  Jephthah,  and  Samson,)  but  not  of  the 
minor  judges,  nor  of  Abimelech.  It  would  thus  have 
embraced  the  following  parts  of  our  present  Book  :  ii.  6- 
19,  iii.  7-80,  iv.  1-viii.  29  [viii.  83-35]  and  parts  of  x.  6- 
16,  xi.  1-xii.  7,  and  xiii.-xiv. 

In  what  way  did  R*^  secure  this  result?  It  appears 
probable  that  he  must,  while  keeping  a  good  deal  of  old 
material,  and  subordinating  it  to  his  scheme,  have 
deliberately  rejected  a  certain  amount  of  matter  which 
belonged  to  older  sources.  Some  of  this,  fortunately, 
was  recovered  by  a  later  hand,  and  added  to  our  present 
Book,  as  will  appear. 

Material  included  in  Judges  which  is  older  than  — 
The  results  reached  by  the  critical  analysis  of  the  Book 
go  to  show  (a)  that  the  notices  of  the  greater  judges 
which  have  been  fitted  into  the  Deuteronomic  framework 
are  themselves  composite  in  character,  and  therefore 
must  ultimately  have  been  drawn  from  older  sources ;  ^ 
(b)  certain  parts  of  the  Book  that  fall  outside  the 
Deuteronomic  scheme  belong  to  older  sources.  To  these 
belong  the  old  account  embodied  in  i.  1-ii.  5  ;  ii.  20-iii. 
6,  viii.  38-ix.  57  (the  history  of  Abimelech),  and  xvii.-xxi. 
(mainly).  The  only  parts,  therefore,  of  our  present 
Judges  which  can  be  supposed  to  be  later  (in  literary 
formation)  than  R®  are  the  notices  of  the  minor  judges. 
A  brief  examination  of  these  older  elements  will, 
perhaps,  make  the  points  enumerated  above,  clear. 

(1)  The  opening  narrative  (i.  1-ii.  5)  is  clearly  old.  It  contains 
fragments  of  an  account  of  the  conquest  of  Palestine  by  the  more 
or  less  unorganised  efforts  of  individual  tribes— not,  it  is  to  be 
noticed,  by  united  Israel  under  Joshua’s  leadership.  The  success 
of  the  individual  tribes  is  represented  to  have  been  by  no  means 
complete  in  all  cases.  This  account  agrees  with  a  series  of 
passages  in  the  older  parts  of  Joshua,  and  ‘it  can  hardly  be 
doubted  that  both  Judg,  i.  and  these  notices  in  Joshua  are 
excerpts  from  what  was  once  a  detailed  survey  of  the  conquest  of 
Canaan.2  The  opening  words  {And  it  came  to  pass  after  the  death 
of  Joshua)  are  doubtless  redactional  (to  link  the  narrative  on  to 


^  ‘  It  is  possible  that  the  Deuteronomic  compiler  .  .  .  adopted 
as  the  basis  of  his  work  a  continuous  narrative,  which  he  found 
ready  to  his  hand’  (Driver,  op.  cit.  p.  157). 

2  Driver,  op.  cit.  pp.  153  f.  (where  further  details  are  given). 


HISTORICAL  BOOKS  OUTSIDE  HEXATEUCH  67 

Joshua).  In  reality  the  account  is  parallel  to  those  in  Joshua, 
and  not  a  later  sequel.  The  section  ii.  20-iii.  6  also  contains 
elements  akin  to  i.  l-ii.  5. 

(2)  Coming  now  to  the  histories  of  the  greater  3udges  (and 
ignoring  the  Deuteronomic  framework)  we  are  confronted  again 
with  material  which  is  undoubtedly  old.  There  are  features, 
also,  which  indicate  that  this  old  material  is  composite  in 
character.  A  striking  example  of  this  is  the  story  of  Deborah- 
Barak  embodied  inch,  iv.-v.  The  great  ‘Song’  (v.  2-31a)  is  the 
oldest  and  most  important  source  we  have  for  the  history  of  the 
people  of  Israel’  (Cornill).^  The  prose-narrative  (ch.  iv. )  gives  an 
account  in  several  respects  divergent  from  the  representation  of 
the  ‘  Song.’  The  most  important  of  these  differences  concerns 
Sisera.  In  the  ‘  Song  ’  Sisera  is  the  leading  personage,  while  in 
the  prose-narrative  he  appears  as  the  commander  of  the  forces  of 
Jabin,  king  of  Razor.  The  latter  appears  in  Joshua  xi.  as  the 
head  of  a  coalition  which  was  defeated  by  Joshua  at  the  Sea  of 
Merom.  Thus,  it  would  appear,  two  traditions  of  separate 
events  have  been  confused  in  Judg.  iv.  viz.  :  (1)  ci  history  of 
Jabin,  according  to  which  the  tribes  of  Zebulun  and  Naphtali, 
under  the  leadership  of  Barak  of  Kadesh-Naphtali,  defeated 
Jabin  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Razor.  This  tradition  is  the 
source  of  Josh,  xi.,  which  has  been  developed  out  of  it;  and  (2) 
a  history  of  Sisera,  who  with  900  chariots  was  defeated  at  Kishon 
by  Israel  under  the  leadership  of  Barak  and  Deborah,  and  in  the 
rout  is  slain  by  a  woman.  This  tradition  is  independent  of  that 
in  the  ‘Song.’  [Probably  the  confusion  of  the  two  accounts  of 
two  quite  different  events  was  due  to  the  names  of  the  two 
leaders  Barak  of  Kadesh-Naphtali  and  Barak  of  Issachar.  The 
fusion  had  already  taken  place  when  R“  formed  his  Book  of 

In  a  similar  way  the  histories  of  Gideon,  Abimelech,  and 
Jephthah  show  signs  of  being  composite  narratives,  as  is  also  the 
case  with  the  narrative  about  the  Danites  and  Micah  (xvii.-xviii.) 
and  that  contained  in  xix.-xxi. 

Critical  investigation  has  made  it  probable,  if  not  cer¬ 
tain,  that  the  sources  underlying  the  older  strata  of  the 
Book  really  go  back  to  the  Jabvistic  and  Elobistic  his¬ 
tories  J  and  E.  That  the  latter  certainly  did  not  intend 
to  bring  bis  narrative  to  an  end  with  the  deatb^of  Joshua 
may  be  inferred  from  the  whole  tone  of  Joshua  s  farewell 
discourse,  which  contemplates  and  looks  out  upon  the 
future.  'Fhus  we  have,  in  the  older  accounts  already 
referred  to,  a  fusion  of  J  and  E  narratives.  The  old 
account,  i.  l-ii.  5,  is  assigned  substantially  to  J,  and  is 

1  The  tradition  which  makes  Deborah  herself  the  singer  of  the 
Song  (v.  1)  is  probably  due  to  a  mistaken  interpretation  of  ver.  7, 
where  render  until  that  she  (not  I)  Deborah  rose. 


08 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LITERATURE 


perhaps  the  se(piel  of  ii.  23-iii.  3  (in  a  more  original  form 
of  the  latter).  Thus  J  appears  to  have  narrated  that 
Jahveh  did  not  immediately  expel  the  Canaanites  before 
Israel_,  in  order  that  Israel  might  learn  the  art  of  waging 
war  in  conflict  with  them.  Then  followed  stories  of  such 
conflicts  (embodied  in  ch.  i.).  To  J  also  belong  the 
main  narrative  of  the  history  of  Ehud  (iii.  12-30),  the 
Jabin  tradition  of  ch.  iv.,  the  older  part  of  the  Gideon 
history  (vi.  2h-Qa,  11-24  and  viii.  4-27),  as  well  as  of  the 
Abimelech  history  (part  of  ch.  ix.);  the  narrative  about 
the  Ammonites  in  ch.  xi.  and  xii.  1-G,  and  finally  the 
history  of  Samson  (ch.  xiii.-xiv.)  apart  from  some  slight 
later  revision. 

To  E  the  following  are  assigned  :  i.  In,  ii.  13,  20-22n, 
iii.  5-6  (part  of  the  Ehud  story) ;  the  history  of  Sisera 
which  has  been  worked  into  ch.  iv.  ;  the  ^  Song’  in  ch.  v.  ; 
the  younger  elements  in  ch.  vi.  1-viii.  3  and  viii.  29 
(the  Gideon  narratives),  and  parts  of  the  Abimelech  and 
Jephthah  histories.  In  the  same  way  the  composite 
narrative  in  xvii.-xviii.  can  be  divided  between  J  and  E. 
[Ch.  xix-xxi.  cannot  be  analysed  with  certainty.  But 
it  seems  probable  that  some  older  elements  have  been 
worked  up  and  combined  with  a  quite  late  account,  akin 
to  P.] 

The  Chronology  of  the  Book. — The  chronological  system 
of  the  Book  cannot,  as  it  stands,  be  reconciled  with  other 
data.  It  yields  a  total  for  the  period  of  the  judges  (410 
years)  which  is  much  too  high  to  be  adjusted  to  the  notice 
in  I.  Kings  vi.  1,  which  assigns  480  years  to  the  interval 
between  the  Exodus  and  the  fourth  year  of  King  Solomon’s 
reign.  ^ 

The  Growth  of  the  Book  into  its  present  Form. — The  pre- 
Deuteronomic  Book  of  Judges  thus  consisted  of  narratives 
formed  by  the  union  of  J  and  E.  It  included  i.  1-ii.  5, 
ii.  20-iii.  6,  the  narratives  of  the  greater  judges  (excluding 

1  It  has  been  contended  that  the  chronological  scheme  is  a  purely' 
artificial  one,  deduced  from  the  history  by  a  later  redactor.  The 
four  hundred  and  eighty  years,  according  to  this  view,  were 
arrived  at  by  counting  twelve  generations  from  the  Exodus  to  the 
building  of  the  Temple  by  Solomon  (viz.  Moses,  Joshua,  Othniel, 
Ehud,  Barak,  Gideon,  Jephthah,  Samson,  Eli,  Samuel,  Saul' 
David),  and  assigning  forty  years  to  each  (12x40  =  480).  See 
further  Cornill,  op.  cit.  pp.  168  ff. 


HISTORICAL  BOOKS  OUTSIDE  HEXATEUCH  69 


that  of  Othniel),  ch.  xvii.-xviii.  and  xix.  (substan¬ 
tially).  Out  of  this  material  R®  produced  his  Book  of 
Judges,  eliminating  the  material  that  did  not  harmonise 
with  his  view  of  the  history  (thus  excluding  i.  1-ii.  5,  the 
story  of  Abimelech,  and  ch.  xvii.-xix.).  Pie  further, 
according  to  one  critical  view,  added  Othniel  to  the 
judges,  in  this  way  giving  the  tribe  of  Judah  a  repre¬ 
sentative  place  [the  Othniel  section  is  Deuteronomic 
throughout].  This  Book  was  then  united  to  Joshua  by 
ii.  6-8.  Later  this  Deuteronomic  Book  of  Judges  was 
enlarged  by  a  redactor  dependent  upon  P,  who  restored 
the  sections  rejected  by  11°  (which  had  been  preserved 
in  an  independent  work),  added  to  xix.  the  final  chapters 
xx.-xxi.,  and  inserted  the  five  minor  judges. 

§  2.  The  Books  of  Sajiuel. 

Title  and  Contents. — In  the  Plebrew  Canon  Samuel,  like 
Kings,  is  reckoned  as  one  Book.  The  Book  of  Samuel 
derives  its  name  from  the  fact  that  Samuel  is  a  con¬ 
spicuous  figure  for  a  considerable  part  of  the  book  from 
its  beginning  onwards. 

In  the  LXX.  the  Books  of  Samuel  and  Kings  were  treated  as  a 
complete  history  of  the  kingdoms  of  Israel  and  Judah.  This 
work  was  then  divided  into  four  books,  which  were  entitled 
accordingly  Books  of  Kingdoms  [1,  2,  3,  4]  {(SilSXoL  ^acriXeiiou).  In 
the  Vulgate  Jerome  adopted  the  same  division,  only  for  Books  of 
Kingdoms  he  substituted  Books  of  Kings  [I.,  II.,  III.,  IV.].  Hence 
it  passed  into  Christian  Bibles,  and  from  them  it  was  transferred 
to  printed  Hebrew  texts  of  the  Old  Testament,  with  the  difference, 
however,  that  in  the  Hebrew  Bibles  the  names  Samuel  and  Kings 
were  retained  :  thus  1-4  pacrCkdoov  or  Regum  became  I.-II.  Samuel 
and  I.-II.  Kings. 

The  history  covered  by  1.  and  II.  Samuel  extends  from 
the  birth  of  Samuel  to  the  closing  days  of  David’s  life. 
The  death  of  Saul  marks  the  division  between  I.  and  II. 
Samuel.  The  subject-matter  of  the  Book  may  be  grouped 
under  four  main  heads  :  (1)  Samuel  and  the  establish¬ 
ment  of  the  monarchy  (1.  Sam.  i.-xiv.);  (2)  Saul  and 
David  (I.  Sam.  xv.-xxxi.);  (8)  David  (II.  Sam.  i.-xx.)  ;  and 
(4)  an  appendix  (II.  Sam.  xx.-xxiv.). 

The  contents  in  detail  may  be  briefly  summarised  as  follows ■ 
I.  Samuel:  ch.  i.-iii.,  history  of  Samuel’s  youth;  iv.  1-vii.  1, 


70 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LITERATURE 


defeat  of  Israel  at  Ebenezer — capture  of  the  Ark  by  the  Philis¬ 
tines — its  subsequent  fortunes ;  vii.  2-17,  Samuel’s  marvellous 
victory  by  prayer  over  the  Philistines— Samuel  ‘judge’  over  all 
Israel  to  the  end  of  his  life;  viii.-x.,  the  elders  demand  from 
Samuel  that  a  king  be  chosen  —the  Benjaminite  Saul  chosen  by 
sacred  lot  at  Mizpah,  and  proclaimed  ;  Saul’s  success  in  rescu¬ 
ing  Jabesh  Gilead  from  the  Ammonites  leads  to  the  renewal  of 
the  kingship  ;  xii.,  Samuel’s  resignation  of  his  office  of  judge  and 
solemn  farewell;  xiii.-xiiK,  the  first  Philistine  war — survey  of 
Saul’s  achievements  and  family  ;  xv.,  war  against  Amalek — Saul’s 
rejection ;  xvi.,  David  is  anointed  by  Samuel — comes  from  Beth¬ 
lehem  to  the  court  of  Saul;  x^ni.,  fight  with  Goliath  ;  xviii.-xx.^ 
David’s  relations  with  Saul,  Jonathan,  and  Michal — his  flight; 
xxi.,  David  with  Abimelech  at  Nob — his  residence  with  Achish 
in  Gath;  xxii.,  David  at  the  head  of  a  band  of  four  hundred 
outlaws  in  Judah — Saul’s  vengeance  on  the  priesthood  at  Nob  ; 
xxiii.,  David  in  Keilah — in  the  wilderness  of  Ziph — is  betraj’ed 
by  the  Ziphites  and  only  saved  by  a  Philistine  inroad;  xxiv.^ 
David  spares  Saul’s  life  at  Engedi ;  xxv.,  David,  Nabal,  and 
Abigail ;  xxvi.,  the  Ziphites  again  betray  David — David  again 
spares  Saul’s  life ;  xxvii.,  David  escapes  to  Achish,  king  of  Gath, 
who  assigns  him  Ziklag ;  xxviii.,  war  between  Israel  and  the 
Philistines — Saul  and  the  witch  of  Endor;  David’s 

vengeance  on  the  plunderers  of  Ziklag;  xxxi.,  battle  on  Mount 
Gilboa  and  death  of  Saul. 

II.  Samuel:  ch,  i.,  David  learns  of  Saul’s  death  — lament  over 
Saul  and  Jonathan ;  ii.-iv.,  David  at  Hebron — murder  of  Abner 
and,  later,  of  Ishbaal  (Ishbosheth) ;  v.,  David  king  over  all  Israel 
— captures  Jerusalem — victories  over  the  Philistines ;  vi.,  the  Ark 
brought  to  Jerusalem;  idi.,  David  and  Nathan;  viii.,  survey  of 
David’s  military  exploits  and  state  officials;  ix.,  Jonathan’s  son 
INIeribaal ;  x.-xii.,  Syro- Ammonite  war — David  and  Bathsheba ; 
xiii.,  Amnon  and  Tamar — murder  of  Amnon  by  Absalom  ;  xiv.^ 
Absalom  recalled  from  banishment;  xv.-xviii.,  Absalom’s  re¬ 
bellion;  xix.,  David  returns  to  Jerusalem;  xx.,  rebellion  of  the 
Benjamite  Sheba  ben  Bichri;  xxi.,  Gibeon  and  Saul’s  seven  sons 
— list  of  particular  exploits  during  Philistine  wars;  xxii.^Vs. 
xviii.  ;  xxiii.,  David’s  last  words — list  of  his  heroes;  xxiv.,  num¬ 
bering  of  the  people  and  pestilence— altar  on  the  threshing-floor 
of  Araunah. 

Critical  Analysis  of  I.  and  II.  Samuel :  {a)  I.  Sam.  i.-xv.— 
As  ch.  XV.  forms  the  transition  to  the  history  of  David^  and 
with  it  the  separate  history  of  Saul  is  brought  to  a  close 
in  his  rejection  by  God,  and  the  choice  of  his  successor, 
it  provides  a  convenient  break  in  the  subject-matter  of 
the  history,  and  for  beginning  the  examination  of  the 
sources.  There  is,  of  course,  no  corresponding  break  in 
the  continuity  of  these  sources,  which  are  presupposed  in 


HISTORICAL  BOOKS  OUTSIDE  HEXATEUCH  71 


varying  degree  and  extent  throughout  the  earlier  his¬ 
torical  Books.  Here,  as  in  Judges,  the  narrative  on 
examination  proves  to  he  of  composite  character. 

The  analysis  of  the  sources  can  be  begun  most  con¬ 
veniently  with  an  examination  of  the  narrative  (f  the 
origin  of  the  Israelitish  monarchy  contained  in  ch.  viii.  -xiv. 
Here  it  is  apparent  we  have  a  combination  of  two  inde¬ 
pendent  accounts  as  to  how  Saul  became  king,  which 
differ  in  their  representation  of  Samuel  and  of  his  relation 
to  Saul.  The  older  of  these  narratives  is  made  up  of 
ix.  1-x.  16,  276  [as  in  the  LXX.i],  xi.  1-11,  15,  and  re¬ 
counts  Samuel’s  nomination  of  Saul  as  king,  the  latter  s 
success  against  Nahash,  king  of  Ammon,  and  coronation 
by  the  people  at  Gilgal.  The  sequel  is  contained  in  xni.- 
xiv  which  details  how  Saul  immediately  took  up  and 
prosecuted  the  war  against  the  Philistines  [here,  however, 
xiii.  76-15a  is  probably  from  another  source,  and  vers. 
19-23  seem  to  embody  a  less  trustworthy  tradition  J. 
This  narrative  describes  how  Samuel,  a  noted  seer  in  a 
particular  district,  anoints  the  Benjamite  Saul  (whom  he 
becomes  acquainted  with  as  the  result  of  an  accidental 
meeting),  in  order  that  Israel  may  have  a  warlike  leader, 
and  inspires  him  to  act  when  occasion  arises.  The  moment 
comes  a  month  later  when  Jabesh  Gilead  is  in  dire  peril 
from  the  Ammonite  king.  Saul  summons  a  levy  of  Israel, 
relieves  the  town,  is  proclaimed  king  at  Gilgal  by  the 
exultant  people,  and  thereupon  immediately  prosecutes 
the  war  with  the  Philistines.  It  is  worthy  of  note  that 
throughout  this  narrative  Saul’s  appointment  is  regarded 
favourably,  and  there  is  no  hint  of  any  reluctance  on 
Samuel’s  part  to  see  the  monarchy  established.  Ihe 
other  and  later  narrative  consists  of  viii.  (the  people  s 
request  for  a  king),  x.  l7-27«  (Saul  elected  by  lot  at 
Mizpah),  and  xii.  (Samuel’s  farewell  address  to  the  people). 
In  the  older  narrative  the  sequence  of  events  is  incom¬ 
patible  with  Saul’s  election  by  the  people,  as  described 
in  X.  l7-27a.  We  are  clearly  confronted  with  two  entirely 
independent  representations.  In  the  later  account,  also, 
it  is  to  be  noticed  that  Samuel  is  represented  not  as  a 


1  The  LXX.  makes  ch.  xi.  begin  with  the  clause  \_And  it  came 
to  pass  after  about  a  month]  that  Nahash  the  Ammonite  came  up, 
etc.  (c/.  R.V.,  margin). 

*  Also  X.  8  probably  belongs  to  a  later  tradition. 


72 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LITERATURE 


seer  or  prophet,  but  as  a  judge  ;  the  uiiworthiness  of  his 
sons  for  this  office  is  the  reason  why  the  people  demand 
a  king  ;  and  Samuel  is  represented  as  viewing  this 
demand  with  disfavour,  as  tantamount  to  the  renuncia¬ 
tion  of  Jahveh’s  sovereignty.  The  later  narrative  is 
regarded  by  Budde  as  Elohistic  in  character.  It  is  pro¬ 
bably  pre-Deuteronomic,  and  has  been  influenced  by 
some  form  of  E.  The  older  narrative  may  belong  to  J. 
The  earlier  chapters  (i.-vii.)  may  be  analysed  into  three 
sections:  (1)  ch.  i.-iv.  la;  (2)  iv.  16-vii.  1,  and  (3)  vii. 
2-l7.  The  last  of  these  represents  Samuel  as  a  ^  judge,’ 
in  harmony  with  the  later  narrative  of  the  origin  of  the 
monarchy.  This  also  belongs,  perhaps,  to  a  later  form 
of  E.  Of  the  sections  numbered  (1)  and  (2),  the  latter 
does  not  appear  to  have  been  the  original  sequel  of  the 
former,  whose  principal  theme  of  interest,  the  fate  of 
Eli’s  sons,  becomes  only  an  incident  in  the  national  dis¬ 
aster  recounted  in  ch.  iv.  f.  Not  improbably  ch.  i.-iv.  la, 
was  written  as  a  preface  to  iv.  16-vii.  1,  to  account  for 
Samuel  s  importance  as  a  prophet,  and  give  particulars 
about  Eli’s  sons.  Thus  the  oldest  of  these  three  sections 
is  iv.  16-vii.  1  ;  i.-iv. a  belongs  to  a  later  hand,  and  vii. 
2-17  to  one  later  still. 

Ch.  XV.  (Saul  and  Amalek)  cannot  be  assigned  to  the 
old  narrative  which  ends  at  ch.  xiv.  It  would  clearly  be 
out  of  place  after  the  formal  conclusion  of  the  account  of 
Saul  s  reign  (xiv.  47-51).  At  the  same  time  its  repre¬ 
sentation  of  Samuel  as  a  prophet  (not  a  ^  judge’),  who 
works  by  the  power  of  the  prophetic  word,  harmonises 
with  ch.  i.-iv.  la.  It  thus  stands  midway  between  the  old 
narrative (ix.  1-x.  16,  etc.),  and  the  later  one  (viii.,  etc.). 
It  may,  perhaps,  be  assigned  to  an  early  form  of  E. 

The  Song  of  Hannah  (ii.  1-10)  probably  cannot  be  regarded  as 
a  very  early  composition.  ‘  It  is  a  psalm,  like  other  songs  of  the 
Psalter,  which  only  a  literal  interpretation  of  the  metaphorical 
phrase  in  ver.  5  can  have  placed  in  the  mouth  of  the  mother  of 
Samuel’  (Cornill). 

(5)  I.  Sam.  xvi.-II.  Sam.  viii.  (Saul  and  David).— In 
ch.  ocm.-ocviii.  two  independent  accounts  of  David’s  intro¬ 
duction  to  Saul  emerge.  According  to  one,  xvi. -14-23, 
he  is  a  full-grown  and  experienced  warrior,  ^a  man  of 
war  and  clever  in  speech,’  when  he  enters  the  king’s 
service  on  account  of  his  musical  skill,  and  his  success  in 


HISTORICAL  BOOKS  OUTSIDE  HEXATEUCH  73 


banishing  the  King’s  melancholia  by  means  of  the  harp. 
This  section  may  be  regarded  as  the  continuation  of 
xiv.  12,  and  therefore  be  assigned  to  the  oldest  source  J. 
The  section  xviii.  6-30^  which  describes  Saul’s  growing 
jealousy  of  David  on  account  of  the  fame  he  won  by  his 
exploits,  harmonises  with  this  account  and  is  regarded  by 
Driver  as  its  continuation. 

The  other  account  is  contained  in  xvii.  1-xviii.  5,  and 
represents  David  as  a  shepherd-lad,  inexperienced  in 
warfare  on  his  introduction  to  Saul.  He  attracts  Saul’s 
notice  by  a  deed  of  heroism  against  the  Philistines — the 
conflict  with  Goliath. 

It  is  well  known  that  the  genuine  text  of  the  LXX.  (cod.  Vat.) 
exhibits  a  much  shorter  form  of  the  text  of  ch,  xvii. -xviii., 
omitting  xvii.  12-31,  41,  50,  55-58,  xviii.  7,  8a,  9,  l2a,  13-16, 
20-2la,  22-26a,  27-29a.  Among  critical  scholars  the  point  has 
been  much  debated  whether  these  omissions  were  due  to  the  fact 
that  the  LXX.  translators  had  a  different  (and  shorter)  recension 
of  the  Hebrew' text  before  them,  or  were  deliberately  made  for 
harmonistic  purposes.  It  is  generally  agreed  that  the  (short) 
LXX.  form  of  xviii.  6-30  represents  a  more  original  form  of  text. 
But  Cornill  has  shown  that  the  verses  omitted  by  the  LXX. 
throughout  ch.  xvii. -xviii.  stand  in  organic  connection  with  one 
another,  and  form  a  continuous  narrative,  ‘  so  that  no  other 
explanation  is  possible  than  to  recognise  in  them  fragments  of  a 
further  independent  source-narrative,  which  was  worked  up  into 
the  Hebrew  recension,  but  found  no  acceptance  in  the  Alexan¬ 
drine.’  In  the  shorter  (LXX.)  form  of  xvii. -xviii.  5  David  appears 
as  already  well  known  to  Saul.  Evidently  a  former  part  of  the 
source  here  followed  related  how  David,  a  mere  youth,  had  been 
summoned  to  the  court  because  of  his  musical  gifts.  He  now 
offers  to  fight  Goliath,  and  tells  the  king  how  he  had  rescued  a 
sheep  from  a  lion.  Probably  this  (shorter)  narrative  belongs  to 
the  same  source  as  ch.  xv.,  viz.  E,  and  its  immediate  sequel 
(xviii.  6-30)  is  part  of  the  same  narrative. 

The  immediate  continuation  of  ch.  xviii.  follows  in 
xix.  1-10/)  (where  only  vers.  2-3  are  secondary).^  On 
the  other  hand,  xvi.  1-13,  xix.  11-17,  xix.  18-xx.  la,  and 
xxi.  11-16  (E.V.  10-1.5),  which  belong  to  the  same  source, 
cannot  be  assigned  to  either  of  the  two  main  authorities 
E  or  J.  It  contains  ancient  and  valuable  material  (notice 

1  David,  warned  by  Jonathan,  flees  from  Saul,  visits  Samuel 
at  Ramah  (xix.) ;  again  warned  by  Jonathan  (xx.),  he  repairs  to 
Abimelech  at  Nob,  then  to  Achish  at  Gath  (xxi.),  and  finally  to 
the  cave  of  Adullam  (xxii. ) 


74 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LITERATURE 


especially  xix.  11-17)  as  well  as  other  less  precious 
historically.  Ch.  xxi.  11-16  (E.V.  10-15)  may  possibly, 
as  Kueneii  sug'gests,  have  been  inserted  in  its  present 
context  with  the  object  of  displacing  the  parallel  narra¬ 
tive  in  xxvii.  (David  at  Gath). 

It  should  be  noted  that  xix.  18-xx.  la  (the  origin  of  the  pro¬ 
verb  ‘  Is  Saul  also  among  the  prophets  ?  ’)  is  parallel  with  x. 
10-12  (J). 

In  ch.  XX.  16-xxi.  11  we  have  again  a  fragment  of  the  old 
narrative-source  J  (with  some  revision  in  xx.,  in  vers.  4- 
17;  vers.  40-42  are  rejected  by  Wellhausen  as  secondary). 
Ch.  xxi.  2-10  (E.V.  1-9)  is  assigned  to  E,  and  forms  the 
immediate  continuation  of  xix.  105  [for  xxi.  11-16  (E.V. 
10-15)  see  above].  But  ch.  xxii.  (apart  from  some  slight 
assimilation)  belongs  to  J. 

The  last  nine  chapters  of  I.  Sam.  (xxiii.-xxxi.)  are  mainly 
concerned  with  David's  outlaw-life  (a)  at  Keilah  (xxiii. 
1-13) ;  (5)  in  the  wilderness  of  Ziph  (xxiii.  14-29) ;  (c) 
in  Engedi,  where  he  cuts  off  Saul’s  skirt  in  the  cave 
(xxiv.);  (d)  in  Carmel  [David  and  Nabal]  (xxv.);  (e) 
again  in  the  wilderness  of  Ziph,  where  he  steals  by  night 
Saul’s  spear  and  cruse  of  water  (xxvi.)  Ch.  xxvii. 
describes  how  David  takes  refuge  in  the  country  of  the 
Philistines  with  Achish  ;  then,  how  the  Philistines 
resolve  to  attack  Israel,  and  how  Saul  consults  the  witch 
at  Endor  (xxviii.),  how  David  is  dismissed  by  the  Philis¬ 
tines  (xxix.),  David’s  vengeance  on  the  Amalekite 
plunderers  of  Ziklag  (xxx.),  and  the  death  of  Saul  and 
J onathan  on  Mount  Gilboa. 

Here  xxiii.  19-xxiv.  22  and  xxvi.  (Engedi)  are  probably 
doublets ;  xxvi.  is  the  older  narrative  and  belongs  to  J, 
while  xxiii.  19-xxiv.  23  is  to  be  assigned  to  E  (xxiv.  14 
is  a  gloss,  according  to  Wellhausen).  Ch.  xxiii.  l-14a 
also  belongs  substantially  to  J,  and  xxiii.  145-18  is  an 
Elohistic  parallel  (revised)  to  ch.  xx.  (J). 

The  whole  of  ch.  xxv.-xxxi.  belong  probably  to  J. 
The  only  passage  about  which  any  doubt  arises  is  xxviii. 
3-25.  This  section  seems  to  be  out  of  its  original  place 
(style  and  phraseology  show  that  it  belongs  to  J).  In 
the  Deuteronomic  redaction  of  the  Book  it  was  probably 
suppressed,  and  later  replaced,  but  out  of  its  proper 
position,  which  would  be  between  xxx.  and  xxxi.  It  is 


HISTORICAL  BOOKS  OUTSIDE  HEXATEUCH  76 

generally  agreed  that  the  first  five  chapters  of  II.  Sam. 
(i.-v.)  belong,  as  a  whole,  to  J. 

The  ‘  Song  of  the  Bow  ’  (II.  Sam.  i.  19-27),  as  David’s  lament  oyer 
Saul  and  Jonathan  is  termed,  is  cited  from  the  ancient  collection 
of  national  poetry  known  as  The  Book  of  Jashar  (see  p.  80).  It 
is  without  the  slightest  doubt  the  composition  of  David  himself. 
The  ‘Song’  is  inspired  by  the  deepest  personal  feeling,  but  is 
entirely  destitute  of  the  expression  of  religious  sentiment. 

Probably  in  ch.  iii.  vers.  2-5  are  out  of  their  original  position 
(they  interrupt  the  close  connection  of  vers.  1  and  66),  and  in 
ch.  v.  vers.  4-16  are  similarly  out  of  place  (v.  17  should  follow 
V.  3  immediately). 

The  analysis  of  II.  Sam.  vi.-viii.  (the  removal  of  the  Ark 
to  the  ^  city  of  David  ’  (vi. ) ;  the  prophecy  of  Nathan  (vii. )  ; 
summary  of  David’s  wars  and  list  of  his  ministers  (viii.) 
is  more  complicated.  Ch.  vi.  should,  perhaps,  be  taken 
in  conjunction  with  ix.-xx.  In  any  case  it  may  be 
assigned  to  J.  Ch.  vii.  belongs  to  a  different  categoi  y. 
It  is  Messianic  in  character,  and  some  hold  that  it  did 
not  assume  its  present  form  before  the  time  of  Isaiah. 
ITellhausen  assigns  it  to  the  seventh  century  (making  it 
pre-Deuteronomic).  In  that  case  it  may  be  deiived 
from  a  younger  Jahvistic  (or  Elohistic)  hand.  Ch.  viii. 
is  in  form  a  short  statistical  survey,  like  I.  Sam.  xiv. 
47-51,  and  is  probably  the  work  of  a  redactor.  It  may, 
as  Budde  infers,  have  been  originally  intended  to  take  the 
place  of  II.  Sam.  ix.-xx.,  which  in  one  form  of  the  redaction 
of  the  Book  may  have  been  omitted  in  the  supposed 
interests  of  David’s  reputation,  but  later  restored. 
Ch.  viii.,  however,  is  based  upon  trustworthy  tradition. 
VVellhausen  has  conjectured  that  the  interpolated  pas¬ 
sages  iii.  2-5  and  v.‘  13-16  originally  belonged  to  this 

context.  ,  1 

II.  Sam.  ix.-xx.  (with  I.  Kings  i.  and  ii. ,  which  belong  to 

it)  contains  a  history  of  events  in  David’s  court-Vife,  and 
has  a  concluding  notice  in  xx.  28-26.  It  is  a  wonder¬ 
fully  vivid  narrative  of  priceless  historical  value,  which 
must  largely  be  based  upon  the  testimony  of  an  cy®" 
witness.  Its  present  literary  form  belongs  to  J.  The 
appended  chapters,  II.  Sam.  xxi.  -xxiv.,  disjoin  the  narrative 
just  described.  All  the  same,  a  good  deal  of  the  material 
belongs  to  J. 

Probably  the  dislocation  arose  thus :  xxi.  1-14  (J)  and  xxiv. 


76 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LITERATURE 


originally  were  consecutive,  and  stood  hefo7’e  ch.  ix.  (the  incidents 
narrated  probably  belong  to  the  beginning  of  David’s  reign) : 
ch.  xxi.  15-22  and  xxiii.  8-39  are  a  later  interpolation,  and  the 
poetical  pieces  (xxii.  and  xxiii.  1-7)  latest  of  all.  When  ch.  ix.-xx. 
were  eliminated  by  a  Deuteronomic  editor,  and  replaced  by 
ch.  viii.,  he  presumably  retained  xxi.  and  xxiv.  on  account  of 
their  theocratic  character,  and  inserted  them  as  a  supplement  to 
his  panegyric  in  ch.  viii.  The  later  hand  that  restored  ix.-xx., 
kept  xxi.  and  xxiv.  at  the  end  of  the  Book  (placing  ix.-xx.  between 
viii.  and  these):  later,  xxi.  15-22  and  xxiii.  8-39  were  inserted 
between  xxi.  and  xxiv.;  and  later  still,  xxii.  and  xxiii.  1-7  between 
xxi.  22  and  xxiii.  8.  Thus  ‘a  double  interpolation  has  taken 
place  in  a  section  which  is  itself  an  interpolation’  (Cornill). 

Growth  of  the  Book. — The  whole  of  II.  Sam.  thus, 
with  the  exception  of  ch.  vii.  and  viii.  and  the  two  poetical 
pieces  mentioned  below  (together  with  some  traces  of  E 
in  ch.  i.  and  possibly  xxiv.)  emanates  from  J  :  1.  Sam., 
with  the  exception  of  some  not  considerable  independent 
pieces,  can  be  apportioned  between  J  and  E.  It  is  note¬ 
worthy  that  with  the  death  of  Saul  E  suddenly  disappears. 
The  Book,  like  Judges,  seems  to  have  undergone  a 
Deuteronomic  redaction,  when  1.  Sam.  xxviii.  8-2o  and 
II.  Sam.  ix.-xx.  were  cut  out;  but  the  Deuteronomic 
revision  of  the  text  was  much  less  thorough  than  in  the 
case  of  Judges,  being  limited  to  a  slight  revision  of 
particular  passages,  and  a  cautious  extension  of  the 
chronological  framework.  I.  and  II.  Sam.  must  have 
assumed  essentially  their  present  form  before  the  time 
of  the  Chronicler. 

The  Psalm  in  II.  Sam.  xxii.  (  =  Ps.  xviii.)  is  almost  certainly  a 
composite  production.  In  the  first  part,  ‘  a  pious  devotee  of  the 
Law  is  the  speaker.’  The  second  part  can  only  be  understood  as 
the  utterance  of  a  warlike  and  successful  king,  and  fits  the  cir¬ 
cumstances  of  David.  The  two  parts  appear  to  have  been  accom¬ 
modated  to  each  other  by  a  redactor  who  inserted  them  in 
Samuel :  thence  the  psalm  was  taken,  perhaps,  into  the  Psalter.  * 

II.  Sam.  xxiii.  1-7  (‘  the  last  words  of  David’),  both  in  form  and 
contents,  belongs  to  a  later  age  than  the  David-narratives : 
ver.  1  depends  upon  the  Balaam-oracles,  and  vers.  0-7  suggests  a 
comparatively  late  date.  This  piece  was,  no  doubt,  inserted  at 
the  same  time  as  xxii. 

§  8.  The  Books  of  Kings. 

Title  and  Contents. — The  title  and  division  of  the  Book 
have  already  been  explained  in  connection  with  1.  and 


HISTORICAL  BOOKS  OUTSIDE  HEXATEUCH  77 


II.  Samuel.  Like  the  latter,  Kings  is  regarded  in  the 
Hebrew  Canon  as  a  single  book. 

The  entire  work  (1.  and  H.  Kings)  covers  the  history  ot 
Israel  (later  of  Israel  and  Judah,  and  Judah  alone)  from 
the  period  of  David’s  nomination  of  Solomon  as  his 
successor  down  to  the  release  of  Jehoiachin  from  prison 
in  Babylon  by  Evil-Merodach  in  562  b.  c. 

Structure  of  Kings. — This  cannot  he  described  more 
succinctly  than  in  Professor  Driver’s  words  :  ^  ^  The 
structure  of  the  two  books  is  essentially  similar  to  that  of 
the  central  part  of  the  Book  of  Judges;  materials 
derived  from  other  sources  have  been  arranged  together, 
and  sometimes  expanded  at  the  same  time,  in  a  frame¬ 
work  supplied  by  the  compiler.  The  framework  of  the 
compiler  is  in  general  readily  distinguishable.  It  com¬ 
prises  the  chronological  details,  references  to  authorities, 
and  judgments  on  the  character  of  the  various  kings, 
especially  with  reference  to  their  attitude  at  the  high 
places— all  cast  in  the  same  literary  mould,  and  marked 
by  the  same  characteristic  phraseology.  Both  in  point 
of  view  and  in  phraseology,  the  compiler  shows  himself 
to  be  strongly  influenced  by  Deuteronomy.’ 

Authorities  referred  to  by  the  Compiler. — One  feature 
that  distinguishes  Kings  from  earlier  historical  works  is 
the  constant  reference  in  it  to  certain  authorities  for 
particulars  as  to  matters  not  recorded  in  the  canonical 
compilation.  These  authorities  are  (a)  for  the  reign  of 
Solomon,  the  ^  Book  of  the  Acts  of  Solomon  ’  (1.  Kings 
xi.  41);  (6)  for  the  Northern  Kingdom,  the  ‘Book  of 
the  Chronicles  (Hebrew  dihre-ha-yamim)  of  the  Kings 
of  Israel  ’  (seventeen  times— for  all  the  kings  except 
Jehoram  and  Hoshea) ;  for  the  Southern  Kingdom,  the 
‘  Book  of  the  Chronicles  of  the  Kings  of  Judah  ’  (for  all 
except  five).  What  is  the  nature  of  these  Books  of 
Chronicles  or  Annals  (Hebrew ^ words  or  acts  of  days) 
referred  to  ?  From  the  fact  that  a  regular  court  official 
appears  among  the  ministers  of  David,  Solomon, 
Hezekiah,  and  Josiah  who  bears  the  title  of  recorder f 
it  may  fairly  be  inferred  that  official  annals  were  kept  in 

1  i.O.T.,  p.  175. 

2  Hebrew  mazkir,  literary  remembrancer  ;  cf.  II.  Sam.  viii.  16, 
XX.  24  ;  1.  Kings  iv.  3  ;  II.  Kings  xviii.  18,  37  ;  II.  Chron.  xxxiv. 
8 ;  cf,  I.  Chron.  xxvii.  24  ;  Neh.  xii.  23. 


78 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LITERATURE 


which  the  acliievements  of  the  kings  and  personal  details 
about  them  were  set  forth.  It  is_,  however,  hardly 
probable  that  these  state  archives  are  to  be  understood 
by  the  authorities  cited  by  the  compiler.  The  latter  is 
referring  to  continuous  works,  i.e.  to  historical  compila¬ 
tions,  in  which  the  reigns  of  a  succession  of  monarchs 
were  surveyed  (probably  from  a  political  point  of  view). 
The  works  in  question  may,  of  course,  have  been,  and, 
no  doubt,  were  based  upon  original  documents  and 
records,  but  are  not  to  be  identified  with  the  latter.  It 
should  be  noted  that  these  authorities  are  referred  to 
for  supplementary  information  (of  a  political  kind)  not 
included  in  Kings ;  they  can,  therefore,  hardly  be 
regarded  as  sources  of  the  Kings’  narrative. 

The  compiler  may  very  likely,  however,  have  derived  his 
statistical  material  from  these  works,  viz.  data  as  to  the  monarch’s 
age  on  ascending  the  throne,  the  duration  of  his  reign,  name  of 
his  mother,  etc.  This  statistical  material  is  usually  styled  the 
‘Epitome,’  which  in  form  is  doubtless  the  work  of  the  original 
compiler  himself. 

Composition  and  Authorship  of  I.  and  II.  Kings. --The 
compiler  already  referred  to  may  be  regarded  as  the  real 
author  of  what  substantially  was  our  present  Books  of 
Kings.  He  was  imbued  with  the  spirit  of  Deuteronomy, 
and  wrote  in  the  later  days  of  the  Judaean  monarchy, 
perhaps  in  the  reign  of  Jehoiachim,  c.  600  b.c.  To  him 
must  be  ascribed  the  characteristic  scheme  for  the  survey 
of  each  royal  reign  which  runs  through  the  whole  Book. 
This  compiler,  M^hom  Kuenen  denominates  R®^  (to  dis¬ 
tinguish  him  from  a  later  Deuteronomic  redactor,  R^^^ 
will  be  the  author  of  1.  Kings  i.-IL  Kings  xxiv.  (apart 
from  some  later  elements)  in  the  sense  that  lie  collected 
the  great  mass  of  the  material  and  determined  its  main 
outlines.  He  himself  presumably  wrote  the  prophetical 
epitome  already  referred  to,  and  incorporated  into  his 
work  the  other  (older)  sources  referred  to  below.  From 
II.  Kings  XXV.  80  it  can  be  concluded  that  R®^  can  have 
written  at  the  earliest  in  the  latter  half  of  the  Babylonian 
exile  ;  he  must,  of  course,  be  regarded  as  the  author  of 
the  last  chapter,  1 1.  Kings  xxv. 

From  also,  according  to  Kuenen,  the  following  passages  are 
to  be  derived  :  I.  Kings  iii.  3,  15  ;  v.  4-5  (  =  iv.  24-25  E.  V.) ;  viii. 


HISTORICAL  BOOKS  OUTSIDE  HEXATEUCH  79 


15-53 ;  ix.  1-9  ;  xv.  4-5 ;  xvi.  7,  12-13 ;  II.  Kings  xiii.  4-G,  23 ; 
xvii.  7-17  (vers.  19-20  and  29-34a  form  a  later,  and  vers.  .346-40 
the  latest  supplement  of  all  in  this  chapter) ;  xxi.  11-15  ;  xxii. 
15-20  ;  xxiii.  2G-27 ;  xxiv.  2-4.  Kuenen  would  also  ascribe  to 
Rd2  I.  Kings  xiii.  and  II.  Kings  i. 

It  is  probable  that  is  responsible  for  the  synchron¬ 
istic  notices  which  appear  in  the  framework,  and  which 
he  appears  artificially  to  have  deduced  from  the  older 
chronology  already  present  in  the  notices  of  the  reigns. 
In  that  case  he  will  have  arranged  the  present  sequence 
of  Israelite  and  Judaean  kings,  which  corresponds  to  the 
synchronistic  notices  {cf.  Cornill,  op.  cit.  p.  219). 

[There  are  traces  also  of  a  later  revision  dependent  on 
P,  but  these  are  not  considerable.] 

Analysis  and  Sources  of  I.  and  II.  Kings. — For  the  purposes 
of  critical  analysis  the  Books  may  be  divided  into  three 
parts  :  (1)  I.  Kings  [i.-ii.]  iii.-xi.  (dealing  with  the  reign 
of  Solomon) ;  (2)  I.  Kings  xii.-II.  Kings  x.  ;  and  (8) 
II.  Kings  xi.-xxv. 

(1)  I.  Kings  [i.-ii.]  iii.-xi.  (Solomon). — As  has  already 
been  pointed  out,  I.  Kings  i.-ii.  form  the  immediate 
continuation  of  II.  Sam.  ix.-xx.,  and  may  at  once  be 
dismissed. 

lu  ch.  ii.  vers.  2-4  clearly  are  due  to  the  compiler,  as  also  is 
the  concluding  formula  respecting  David’s  death  and  the  length 
of  his  reign,  which  is  given  as  it  occurs  at  the  end  of  all  the 
royal  reigns  in  Kings. 

Solomon’s  reign  is  dealt  with  in  greater  detail  than  is 
the  case  with  any  later  king.  It  occupies  ch.  iii.-xi.  of 
I.  Kings.  The  material  here  embodied  is  grouped  in 
such  a  way  that  the  central  part  of  the  narrative  consists 
of  the  description  of  Solomon’s  buildings  (ch.  vi.-vii.), 
while  on  each  side  of  this  a  series  of  narratives  and  short 
accounts,  illustrating  Solomon’s  wisdom  and  riches,  is  set 
forth.  In  ch.  xi.  some  account  of  the  opponents  of  the 
king  is  given  preparatory  to  the  division  of  the  kingdom 
narrated  in  ch.  xii.  The  parts  of  these  chapters  which 
belong  to  the  Deuteronomic  redaction  (R^^  and  R^^^  are 
distinguishable  without  much  difficulty.  They  include 
the  following  :  ch.  iii.  2-8  (disapproval  of  the  ^  high- 
places  ’ ;  notice  that  the  following  narrative,  ver.  4  ff., 
does  not  hint  at  any  such  disapproval)  ;  iii.  14-15,  v.  4-5 


80 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LITERATURE 


(  =  iv.  24-25  E.V.);  [v.  165-19  =  vers.  25-5  inE.V.];  vi. 
11-18;  [vii.  47-49];  viii.  14-66;  ix.  1-9  [xi.  1-13];  xi. 
29-39  ;  xi.  41-43.^  What  is  left  after  the  elimination  of 
these  passages  may  be  regarded  as,  in  the  main,  pre- 
Deuteronomic. 

The  work  represented  by  this  pre-Deuteronomic 
material  seems  to  have  consisted  of  a  series  of  detached 
notices  illustrating  Solomon’s  wealth,  magnificence,  and 
political  power,  the  central  section  being  an  account  of 
his  buildings  (ch.  vi.-vii.).  At  the  end  came  a  notice  of 
political  opponents  who  from  time  to  time  disturbed  his 
reign  (ch.  xi.  in  its  original  form).  ^Throughout  the 
author  evinces  a  warm  admiration  for  Solomon.  .  .  . 
The  darker  shades  of  the  picture  seem  largely,  though 
not  perhaps  entirely,  to  be  due  to  the  Deuteronomic 
compiler.’  ^ 

It  is  interesting  to  note  in  this  connection  that  what  appears  to 
be  an  authentic  utterance  of  Solomon  regarding  the  dedication 
of  the  Temple  is  preserved  in  the  LXX.  of  I.  Kings  viii.,  and  is 
there  expressly  derived  from  an  ancient  source  which  probably  is 
the  Book  of  Jashar.  The  text  appears  in  a  corrupt  form  in 
viii.  11,  12  of  the  Masoretic  text,  but  in  the  LXX.  after  ver.  53. 
It  may  be  restored  thus :  ^ 

Then  said  Solomon : 

The  sun  hath  Jahveh  set  in  the  heavens. 

But  he  hath  determined  to  dwell  in  thick  darkness  ; 
Build  my  house,  a  house  of  habitation  for  me. 

That  I  may  dwell  therein  for  ever. 

Is  it  not  \oritten  in  the  Book  of  J ashar  ? 

[For  the  last  line  the  LXX.  has  ovk  l8ov  aury  y^ypairrat  ev 
^L^\L(p  TTjS  ipbys,  which  probably  implies  a  scribal  error  of  ha-sMr 
{song)  for  ha-ydshdr,] 

Thus  The  Book  of  Jashar,  which  is  cited  in  Josh.  x.  11  and 
II.  Sam.  i.  16  (J)  as  the  source  for  certain  poetical  pieces,  must 
have  been  a  collection  of  songs,  whose  title  may  have  been 
connected  in  some  way  with  the  honorific  name  applied  to  Israel 
— Jeshurun.'^  It  will  have  been  a  Judaean  work  compiled  in  the 
time  of  the  (early)  monarchy. 

1  The  passages  in  square  brackets  are  in  the  nature  of  a  revision 
of  older  material ;  the  others  may  be  regarded  mainly  as  the 
independent  composition  of  the  Deuteronomic  redaction. 

2  Driver,  L.O.T.,  p.  183. 

3  Cf.  Burney,  Notes  on  the  Hebrew  Text  of  Kings,  p.  Ill; 
and  Robertson  Smith,  O.T.J.C.'^,  pp.  433-435. 

<  Some  explain  the  title  to  mean  Book  of  the  Valiant  or  Book 
of  Heroes. 


HISTORICAL  BOOKS  OUTSIDE  HE.^ATEUCH  81 


(2)  I.  Kings  xii.-II.  Kings  x.  (Israel  and  Judah). — Tliis 
section — forming  tlie  central  core  of  the  whole  work — 
begins  a  comprehensive  account  of  the  entire  history  of 
the  monarchy  from  the  division  of  the  kingdom.  It  is^ 
in  a  real  sense,  a  uniform  literary  work,  the  production 
mainly  of  one  author,  the  Deuteronomic  compiler. 
Everything  is  judged  by  the  standard  of  the  Deuteronomic 
code,  and  the  information  given  is  fitted  into  a  frame¬ 
work  which  is  marked  by  a  stereotyped  terminology. 
In  each  case  a  theocratic  verdict  is  dealt  out  to  every 
king,  even  to  Zimri,  whose  reign  only  lasted  seven  days. 
The  compiler  is  not  primarily  interested  in  purely  secular 
and  political  affairs,  and  for  details  of  such  refers  the 
reader  to  the  historical  works  already  discussed  in  a 
previous  section.  Apart  from  the  framework  which  is 
easily  distinguishable,  and  the  short  notices,  which 
contain  little  more  than  a  brief  summary,^  there  are 
longer  narrative-pieces  which  the  compiler  has  admitted 
into  his  work  and  adapted  to  it.  1  he  first  instance  of 
such  is  I.  Kings  xii.  1-20,  a  vivid  account  of  the  council 
at  Shechem  and  the  division  of  the  kingdom^  resulting 
from  it.  This  is  probably  of  Ephraimitic  origin— notice 
the  hostile  description  of  Rehoboam  as  a  hasty  and 
inexperienced  youth ;  it  shows  signs  of  affinity^  with 

I.  Sam.  XV.,  and  may  perhaps  be  related  to  E.  In 
ch.  xiii.  we  have  a  narrative  of  a  different  character  (the 
prophecy  against  the  altar  at  Bethel)  which  may  have 
been  inserted  by  R^^.  In  any  case  it  is  ^  not  probably  of 
very  early  origin  ’  (Driver).  U  hough  it  has  been  subjected 
to  a  thorough  Deuteronomic  revision,  the  groundwork 
of  xiv.  1-18  (the  wife  of  Jeroboam  and  the  prophet 
Abijah)  is  probably  old.  [From  xiy.  10-xvi.  the  narrative 
consists  mainly  of  short  notices  written  by  the  compiler.] 

In  I.  Kings  xvii.-II.  Kings  x.  we  reach  the  great  collection 
of  Elijah-  and  Elisha-narratives,  which  are  among  the 
finest  examples  of  Hebrew  historical  writing  in  the  Old 
Testament.  These  are  probably  not  all  from  one  source, 
but  all  appear  to  be  of  North  Israelitish  origin.  The 
history  of  Elijah,  embodied  in  I.  Kings  xvii.-xix.,  xxi.  ; 

II.  Kings  i.  2-4,  la,  may,  however,  belong  to  one  source 

1  The  statistical  matter  here  embodied  was  probably  takeri  by 
the  compiler  from  the  historical  annals  {Chronicles  of  the  Kings 
of  Israel,  etc.)  and  written  up  in  his  own  style. 


F 


82 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LITERATURE 


[11.  Kings  i.  26-10  is  generally  regarded  as  a  later  narra¬ 
tive^  of  much  the  same  kind  as  I.  Kings  xiii.  ;  cf.  1.  Sam. 
xix.  18-24].  By  the  side  of  this  prophetical  history 
stands  as  a  separate  group  I.  Kings  xx.  and  xxii.,  with 
which  may  perhaps  be  also  ranged  II.  Kings  iii.  4-27 
(Jehoram  and  Jehoshaphat  against  Moab) ;  vi.  24-vii.  20 
(siege  of  Samaria  by  Benhadad  ;  relieved  in  accordance 
with  Elisha’s  prediction)  ;  and  ix.  1-x.  28  (containing  a 
vivid  account  of  the  events  that  led  to  Jehu’s  succession). 
^  In  all  these  narratives  the  political  interest  predomin¬ 
ates  over  the  biographical ;  and  some  noticeable  similar¬ 
ities  of  form  and  expression  also  occur.’  ^  The  Elisha- 
stories  present  less  a  history  of  Elisha  than  a  ^  series  of 
anecdotal  narratives.’  They  are  introduced  by  the 
narrative  of  Elijah’s  ascension  to  heaven,  where  also 
Ellisha’s  succession  to  the  inheritance  of  his  master  is 
recorded  (11.  Kings  ii.  1-18),  and  include  also  ii.  19-22 
(the  bitter  waters  sweetened)  ;  ii.  23-25  (the  mocking 
children  rent  by  bears)  ;  iv.  1-7  (the  widow’s  oil  multi¬ 
plied)  ;  iv.  8-37  (the  Shunammite  woman) ;  iv.  38-41 
(‘death  in  the  pot’)  ;  iv.  42-44  (the  barley  loaves  multi¬ 
plied)  ;  V.  (Naaman) ;  vi.  1-7  (the  iron  axe-head  made  to 
swim)  ;  vi.  8-13  (the  Syrians  attempt  to  capture  Elisha)  ; 
viii.  J-6  (Gehazi  recounts  to  the  king  of  Israel  the 
wonders  wrought  by  Elisha) ;  viii.  7-15  (Elisha  and 
Hazael) ;  to  which  must  be  added  xiii.  14-19  (Elisha  and 
Joash),  and  xiii.  20-21  (the  miracle  wrought  by  Elisha’s 
bones). 

These  narratives  may  have  been  derived  from  a  collection  of 
traditional  stories,  compiled  by  different  hands,  of  the  lives  of 
the  prophets. 

(3)  II.  Kings  xi.-xxv. — In  this  section  of  the  work  (apart 
from  what  is  due  to  R®^  and  R®^)  we  now  encounter  a 
number  of  detailed  JudcPAin  histories.  Here,  in  place  of 
the  prophets  of  the  North  Israelite  narratives,  the  Temple 
and  priesthood  of  Jerusalem  assume  special  prominence. 
These  accounts  are  contained  in  the  following  sections  : 
(a)  oci.-xii.  16  (Heb.  17)  (the  elevation  of  Joash  to  the 
throne,  and  the  measures  taken  by  him  regarding  the 
Temple)  ;  (b)xvi.  10-18  (the  altar  of  Ahaz)  ;  and  (c)  xxii.- 
xxiii.  30. 


Driver,  op.  cit.  p.  185. 


HISTORICAL  BOOKS  OUTSIDE  HEXATEUCH  83 

Of  the  intervening  matter,  xiii.  14-19  (Elisha  and  Joash)  has 
already  been  discussed ;  xiv.  8-14  (Amaziah’s  challenge  to  Joash) 
is  probably  of  North  Israelitish  origin  (c/.  ver.  11)  ;  ch  xv.-xvi. 
are  mainly  occupied  with  short  notices  (except  xvi.  lu-l<-). 

Tlie  sections  numbered  (a)  and  (b)  above,  and  also 
(c)  partly  (cf.  xxii.  3  f.),  i«ay  not  improbably  depend  upon 
a  ^Temple-history’  in  which  the  Temple  archives  were 
utilised.  Perhaps,  however,  xxii.  3  f. — which  has  a 
marked  Deuteroiiomic  character — is  dependent  rather 
upon  xii.,  with  which  it  has  striking  points  of  contact. 
It  has  been  supposed  that  I.  Kings  yk-vh.  may  also 
largely  have  been  derived  from  this  old  ^  lemple-histoiy 
[from  this  source  also  probably  come  I.  Kings  xiv.  25-28, 
XV.  16-22,  as  well  as  II.  Kings  xiv.  8-11,  and  xviii.  14-16J. 
In  ch.  xvii.,  after  the  close  of  the  history  of  the  North¬ 
ern  Kingdom,  the  Deuteroiiomic  compiler  (or  compilers) 
proceeds  to  survey  at  length  the  causes  which,  according 
to  his  view,  led  to  its  downfall  (xvii.  7-23),  and  gives  an 
account  of  the  origin  of  the  mixed  population  of  Samaria 
and  their  religion  (xvii.  24-41).  With  ch.  xviii.  begins  the 
reign  of  Hezekiah.  Here  vers.  1-12  in  their  present  form 
are  due  to  the  compiler  ;  vers.  14-16  (as  stated  above)  are 
probably  derived  from  the  '  Temple-history  (Hezekiah  s 
name  in  these  verses  is  spelt  differently  in  Hebrew  from 
the  form  used  elsewhere  in  Kings);  ch.  xviii.  17-xx.  PJ 
recur  in  almost  exactly  the  same  form  in  Isa.  xxxvi.- 
xxxix.  They  are  probably  in  their  original  position  here, 
and  were  taken  from  Kings  for  insertion  at  the  end  of 
the  first  complete  collection  of  Isaiah  s  prophecies  (see 
further  in  the  section  on  Isaiah,  pp.  06,  90  f.).  The  com¬ 
piler’s  work  increases  in  extent  as  the  narrative  approaches 
his  own  times.  Ihe  greater  part  of  ch.  xxi.  (Manasseh) 
is  his  work,  which  culminates  in  the  long  account  of 
Josiah’s  reign  with  the  finding  of  the  Book  of  the  Law 
and  the  ensuing  Deuteroiiomic  reformation  (xxii.  1-xxiii. 
30).  The  last  two  chapters  are  also  Deuteroiiomic  in 
character,  ch.  xxv.  being  the  work  probably  of 

§  4.  Chronicles  and  Ezra-Nehemiah. 

The  Books  of  Chronicles  and  Ezra-Nehemiah  occupy  a 
position  peculiar  to  themselves  among  the  histoiical  books 
of  the  Old  Testament.  They  form  a  second  group  which, 


84 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LITERATURE 


while  ))arallel  to  the  earlier  series  ending-  with  Rings  and 
covering  almost  the  same  historical  period,  are  marked 
off  from  it  both  in  style  and  point  of  view.  They  survey 
the  entire  history — from  Adam  to  Nehemiah’s  second 
visit  to  Jerusalem  (432  b.c.) — from  a  standpoint  which 
may  be  described  as  ecclesiastical  and  priestly. 

The  books  themselves  ^form  really  a  single,  continuous 
work  ’  (Driver). 

This  is  made  clear  by  various  indications.  The  same  very 
peculiar  style,  and  the  same  standpoint  from  which  the  history  is 
treated,  prevail  throughout.  The  same  compiler’s  hand  is,  in  fact, 
manifest  all  through.  The  fact  that  Ezra'^  verbally  continues 
the  narrative  of  II.  Ohron.  xxxvi.  (c/.  II.  Chron.  xxxvi.  22,  2.3,  with 
Ezra  i.  1-2)  is  significant  in  this  connection.  Thus  the  entire  work 
(I.  and  II.  Ohron.,  Ezra-Nehemiah),  which  forms  a  single  continu¬ 
ous  narrative  from  Adam  to  Nehemiah’s  second  visit  to  Jerusalem 
in  432  B.C.,  Avas,  doubtless,  compiled  by  the  Chronicler.  That 
part  of  the  Chronicler’s  work  which  supplemented  the  earlier 
historical  books,  viz.  Ezra-Nehemiah,  was  detached  and  admitted 
into  the  sacred  collection  of  Scriptures  fii’st ;  then,  later,  the  rest. 
Hence  the  order  in  the  Hebrew  Canon:  Ezra-Nehemiah  and 
Chronicles. 


in)  The  Books  op'  Chronicles. 

Title  and  Contents. — The  Hebrew  name  is  D'D’H  '"in 

.  T“  ..  .  .  ) 

i.e.  Words  or  Acts  of  Days  {  =  Annals),  and  the  work  so 
called  forms  in  the  Hebrew  Canon  one  Book.  The 
division  into  two  books  came,  as  in  the  case  of  Samuel 
and  Kings,  from  the  LXX.,  where  the  book,  so  divided,  is 
termed  TrapaXetTro/xei'coi'  a  and  ft'.  The  title  TrapnKenro- 
fxfva,  i.e.  things  left  over,  characterises  Chronicles  as  a 
Avork  supplementing  the  older  canonical  historical  books, 
filling  in  what  has  been  omitted  from  them.  The  V^'iilgate 
adopted  the  twofold  division,  and  retained  the  LXX.  title 
Paraiipomenon  (a  gen.  plural :  liber  understood).  Jerome 
in  the  Proloyus  Galeatas  suggested  the  title  Ghronichon  : 
hence  Chronicles. 

The  Contents  of  I.  and  II.  Chronicles  run  parallel  Avith 
those  of  the  historical  books  from  Genesis  to  11.  Kings. 
The  whole  work  falls  naturally  into  four  parts  : — 

(1)  1.  Chron.  i.-ix.  contains  a  series  of  genealogies 

i  In  the  HebvcAv  Canon  Ezra-Nehemiah,  like  I.  and  II. 
Chronicles,  forms  a  single  book. 


HISTORICAL  BOOKS  OUTSIDE  HEXATEUCH  85 

(vvitli  short  incidental  notices  scattered  within  it)  from 
Adam  to  Israel  and  Esaii-Edom  (i.)  j  of  the  tribe  of 
Judah  (ii.);  of  the  House  of  David  (iii.) ;  of  Judah  and 
Simeon  (iv.)j  of  Reuben^  Gad,  and  East-Manasseh  (v. 
]-26);  of  Levi  (v.  27-vi.  28);  the  levitical  cities  (vi.  39- 
60) ;  Issachar,  Benjamin,  Naphtali,  West-Manasseh, 
Ephraim,  Asher  (vi'i.);  Benjamin  and  the  House  of 
Saul  (viii.) ;  list  of  the  inhabitants  of  Jerusalem  (ix.  1-34; 
vers.  35-44  =  viii.  29-38). 

(2)  1.  Chron.  x.-xjcioc.  :  The  history  of  David. 

The  reign  of  Saul  is  briefly  referred  to  in  I.  Chron.  x.,  and  soon 
dismissed.  In  the  account  of  David  there  aie  many  omissions 
{e,(j.  incidents  of  David’s  youth,  his  persecution  by  Saul,  etc.  ; 
most  of  what  is  recorded  in  II.  Sam.  ix.-xx.  is  ignored  (as  being 
of  a  personal  or  private  nature). 

(3)  11.  Chron.  i.-ix. :  The  reign  of  Solomon  (with  some 
omissions)  and 

(4)  II.  Chron.  x.-xxxvi. :  The  history  of  the  kings  of 
Judah  up  to  the  Exile. 

After  the  division  of  the  monarchy  no  account  is  taken  of  the 
Northern  Kingdom  (except  where  this  is  unavoidable,  as,  c.r/., 
II.  Chron.  xxii.  7-9).  The  interest  of  the  compiler  manifests 
itself  especially  in  the  ecclesiastical  aspects  of  the  history. 

All  through  Chronicles  (as  well  as  through  Ezra- 
Nehemiah)  the  special  aim  of  the  compiler  is  manifestly 
to  give  a  history  of  Judah  with  special  reference  to  the 
Temple,  its  priesthood  and  cultus. 

Date  of  the  Work. — As  in  I.  Chron.  xxix.  7  a  calculation 
is  made  in  darics—a  Persian  coinage  first  introduced  by 
Darius  i. — the  composition  of  tlie  work  cannot  be  placed 
earlier  tlian  the  Persian  period.  But  Ezra-Nehemiah 
contain  many  indications  that  they  cannot  have  been 
compiled  till  (at  the  earliest)  the  end  of  the  Persian 
period,  i.e.  c.  332  n.c.  A  date  a  few  years  later  than 
332  B.c.  is,  therefore,  adopted  by  some  scholars.  But  if, 
as  there  is  some  reason  to  believe,  the  Davidic  genealogy 
in  1.  Chron.  iii.  19-24  is  brought  down  to  the  eleventh 
generation  after  Zerubbahel,  we  are  brought  down  well 
into  the  Greek  period— perhaps  to  a  date  between  300 
and  250  n.c. — as  the  time  when  the  Chronicler  wrote. 

From  the  character  of  his  work  as  a  whole,  and  the 
special  interest  manifested  in  it  in  the  music  of  the 


86 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LITERATURE 


Temple,  it  has  plausibly  been  inferred  that  the  compiler 
was  himself  a  Levite,  and  perhaps  a  member  of  the 
Temple  choir. 

The  Relation  of  Chronicles  to  the  other  Historical  Books  of 
the  Canon. — If  the  Chronicler  wrote  at  so  late  a  date  as 
c.  800  B.c.  ,he  must  naturally  have  been  acquainted  with 
the  older  canonical  historical  books.  And  in  fact  his 
work  does  embody  a  considerable  number  of  passages 
which  have  been  excerpted  from  the  historical  books 
ranging  from  Genesis  to  11.  Kings. 

The  Chronicler’s  method  in  dealing  with  this  earlier 
material  is  not  uniform  throughout.  In  some  cases  he 
has  condensed  whole  sections  into  a  genealogical  list. 
This  is  especially  the  case  in  I.  Chron.  i.-ix.  On  the  other 
hand,  in  1.  Chron.  x.-II.  Chron.  xxxvi.  (which  is  parallel  to 
I.  Sam.  xxxi.-Il.  Kings  xxv.),  he  generally  cites  passages 
without  abbreviation,  which  agree  word  for  word  (with 
slight  divergences)  with  the  form  they  exhibit  in  Samuel 
or  Kings.  ^  In  many  instances  the  excerpts  are  supple¬ 
mented  by  the  insertion  of  verses,  clauses,  or  longer 
passages  ;  and  there  are  a  number  of  omissions. 

A  full  comparative  list  is  given  by  Driver  {L.O.T.,  pp.  487- 
493).  The  exact  state  of  the  case  can,  of  course,  only  be  fully 
understood  by  a  detailed  comparison  and  collation  of  the 
passages. 

The  character  and  aim  of  the  additions  made  by  the 
Chronicler  are  thus  described  by  Driver  : — 

‘^(l)  They  consist  often  of  statistical  matter,  genealo¬ 
gies,  lists  of  names,  etc. 

^(2)  Very  frequently  they  relate  to  the  organisation 
of  public  worship,  or  describe  religious  ceremonies, 
especially  with  reference  to  the  part  taken  in  them  by 
Levites  and  singers  (cf.  ,  e.g.,  1.  Chron.  xv.  4  IF. ,  16  ff.  ; 
xvi.  41  f.  ;  11.  Chron.  xiii.  io  f.,  146  ;  xvii.  8  ;  xx.  19,  21 ; 
xxix.  4  IF.  ;  XXXV.  1  IF.,  etc.). 

^(8)  In  many  cases  they  have  a  didactic  aim:  in 
particular,  they  show  a  tendency  to  refer  events  to  their 
moral  causes — to  represent,  for  instance,  a  great  calamity 
or  deliverance  as  the  punishment  of  wickedness  or  the 

^  Occasionally  the  Chronicler’s  text  is  superior  to  that  of 
Samuel  or  Kings,  exhibiting  a  better  or  more  correct  reading. 
But  more  often  the  alteration  is  due  to  the  Chronicler  Ipmself. 

?  Op.  cit.  p.  494, 


HISTORICAL  BOOKS  OUTSIDE  HEXATEUCII  87 


reward  of  virtue.  This  feature  is  especially  notice¬ 
able  in  the  case  of  discourses  attributed  to  prophets. 
The  prophets  in  the  Chronicles  are  far  more  frequently 
than  in  the  earlier  historical  books  brought  into  relation 
with  the  Kings,  to  whom  they  predict  good  or  ill  success, 
in  accordance  with  their  deserts,  with  much  uniformity 
of  expression,  and  in  a  tone  very  different  from  that  of 
the  prophets  who  appear  in  the  Books  of  Samuel  or 
Kings.  ^ 

One  or  two  instances  will  serve  to  illustrate  the  above.  Cf., 
e.g.,  the  cause  assigned  to  Saul’s  death  in  I.  Chron.  x.  1.3  f.  [So 
Saul  died  for  his  tresj^ass  lohich  he  committed  against  the  Lord, 
because  of  the  word  of  the  Lord  xvhich  he  kept  not ;  and  also  for 
that  he  asked  counsel  of  one  that  had  a  familiar  spirit,  to  inquire 
thereby,  and  inquired  not  of  the  Lord  ;  therefore  he  slew  him,  and 
turned  the  kingdom  unto  David  the  son  of  Jesse)',  II.  Chron, 
xxxiii.  11-13  (Manasseh’s  repentance  leads  to  his  restoration) ; 
XXXV.  21  f.  (Josiah’s  death  at  Megiddo  explained  by  his  rejection 
of  a  divine  warning.) 

For  prophetic  warning.s,  cf.  II.  Chron.  xii.  5-8  (Shemaiah 
announces  Shishak’s  invasion,  which  is  to  be  mitigated  in  its 
consequences  after  the  king’s  repentance) ;  xv.  l-lo  (Asa  and 
Azariah) ;  xvi.  7 -10,  etc. 

The  Sources  of  Chronicles. — Apart  from  the  canonical 
historical  books  already  referred  to,  the  Chronicler  used 
other  sources  for  his  additional  matter,  which  he  expressly 
appeals  to.  Probably  the  genealogies  and  lists  with 
which  his  work  opens  are  ako  largely  based  upon 
w’ritten  sources.  The  sources  expressly  cited  by  the 
Chronicler  fall  into  two  classes  :  {a)  historical,  and  {h) 
prophetic. 

The  historical  sources  cited  are  the  following  : — 

(1)  For  the  history  of  David,  the  Chronicles  of  King  David 
(I.  Chron.  xxvii.  24),  and  the  later  acts  of  David  (I.  Chron. 
xxiii.  27). 

(2)  For  Asa,  a  Book  of  the  Kings  of  Judah  and  Israel  (so  also 
for  Amaziah,  Ahaz,  and  Hezekiah  ^  [with  a  slight  difference  in 
the  Hebrew  title];  cf.  II.  Chron.  xvi.  11,  xxv.  2G,  xxviii.  20, 
xxxii.  32. 

(3)  In  the  cases  of  Jotham  (II.  Chron.  xxvii.  7),  Josiah  (xxxv. 
27),  and  Jehoiakim  (xxxvi.  8),  a  Book  of  the  Kings  of  Israel  and 
Judah  {<f.  also  I,  Chron.  ix.  la). 


1  ‘  The  vision  of  Isaiah  the  prophet,  the  son  of  Amoz,  in  the 
Book  of  the  Kings  of  Judah  and  Israel.^ 


88 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LITERATURE 


(4)  In  the  case  of  Jehoshapliat  (xx.  34),  a  Book  of  the  Kings  of 
Israel  (‘tlie  words  of  Jehu,  sou  of  Hanani,  wliich  are  inserted  in 
the  Book  of  the  Kings  of  Israel^). 

(5)  In  the  case  of  Manasseh  (xxxiii.  18),  the  acts  of  the  Kings  of 
Israel  [of.  also  ver.  10,  where  another  authority  [prophetic]  is 
cited). 

(6)  In  the  case  of  Joash  (xxiv.  27),  a  Midrasli,  of  the  Book  of 
Kings. 

[Probably  (2),  (3),  (4),  and  (5)  in  this  list  refer  to  one  and  the  same 
work  which  embraced  a  history  of  both  Idngdoms.  It  could  not 
have  been  our  canonical  Kings,  because  it  is  cited  for  matters  not 
mentioned  there  [e.g.  I.  Chron.  ix.  1,  genealogies) ;  nor  can  it  be 
identified  with  either  of  the  authorities  cited  in  Kings,  because 
these  were  two  distinct  works,  treating  the  history  of  Israel  and 
Judah  separately.  Perhaps  (6)  was  a  work  distinct  from  the 
above,  of  a  comprehensive  character,  and  written  in  much  the 
same  style  and  spirit  as  the  work  of  the  Chronicler  himself.  The 
term  Midrash  (which  only  occurs  in  II.  Chron.  xiii.  22  and 
xxiv.  27  in  the  Old  Testament)  is  significant  in  this  connection. 
The  word  means  literally  investigation,  and  was  applied  to  a 
method  of  exegesis  by  which  all  possible  hidden  meanings  and 
applications  of  Scripture  were  deduced.  ‘  The  Midrash  may  be 
defined  as  an  imaginative  development  of  a  thought  or  theme 
suggested  by  Scripture,  especiallj''  a  didactic  or  homiletic  exposi¬ 
tion,  or  an  edifying  religious  story.’  This  branch  of  literature  has 
undergone  a  rich  development  in  Rabbinical  Judaism.  ^  A  good 
example  is  seen  in  the  apocryphal  book  of  Susannah.  This  is 
really  a  midrashic  narrative  suggested  by  the  name  Daniel  (  = 
is  my  judge),  and  its  object  is  to  show  how  Daniel’s  judicial 
acumen  justified  his  name.  Midrashic  tendencies  can  be  detected 
in  some  of  the  later  narratives  of  the  Old  Testament  {e.g.  Gen. 
xiy.  ;  possibly  I.  Kings  xiii.).  The  Midrash  of  the  Book  of  Kings 
will  therefore  have  been,  probably,  a  history  of  the  period  of  the 
Israelitish  kings  in  which  the  history  has  been  expounded  in  an 
edifying  way,  with  expansions— similar,  in  fact,  to  Chronicles 
itself.] 

The  prophetic  sources  cited  are  the  following  : — ■ 

(1)  In  the  case  of  David  (I.  Chron.  xxix.  29),  the  words  of 
Samuel  the  seer,  and  the  words  of  Nathan  the  pt^ophet,  and  the 
words  of  Gad  the  seer. 

(2)  In  the  case  of  Solomon  (II.  Chron.  ix.  29),  the  words  of 
Nathan  the  prophet,  the  prophecy  of  Ahijah  the  Shilonite,  and 
the  vision  of  Iddo  the  seer  respecting  J erohoam,  the  son  of  Nehat. 

(3)  In  the  case  of  Rehoboam  (II.  Chron.  xii.  15),  to  the  words  of 
Shemaiah  the  p^^ophct  and  of  Iddo  the  seer  for  reckoning  hy 
genealogies. 

(4)  In  the  case  of  Ai)ijah  (II.  Chron.  xiii.  22),  the  Midrash  of 
the  prophet  Iddo. 


1  Cf.  The  Religion  and  Worship  of  the  Synagogue  (by  Oesterley 
and  Box),  pp.  74  ff. 


HISTORICAL  BOOKS  OUTSIDE  HEXATEUCH  89 

(5)  In  the  case  of  Jelioshaphat,  to  the  words  of  Jcltu,  son  of 
Hanani,  lohich  are  inserted  in  the  Book  of  the  Kings  of  Israel 
[=(4)  in  the  list  of  historical  sources  above]. 

(6)  III  the  case  of  Uzziah  (II.  Chron.  xxvi.  22),  a  writing  of  the 
prophet  Isaiah  (the  rest  of  the  acts  of  Uzziah,  first  and  last,  did 
Isaiah  the  jirophet,  the  son  of  Amoz,  write’ :  cf.  the  ‘vision  of 
Isaiah  cited  for  Hezekiah  in  (2)  of  the  list  of  historical  sources 
above). 

(7)  In  the  case  of  JManasseh,  the  words  of  the  seers  (IL  Chron. 
xxxiii.  19  :  reading  with  the  LXX.  hoztm  for  Masoretic  text 
hozai). 

[These  various  references  jirobably  do  not  imply  separate  writ¬ 
ings  by  the  prophets  in  question,  but  go  back  to  a  single  compre- 
hen^ive  work;  perhaps  the  sections  quoted  formed  part  of  the 
Midrash  of  the  Book  of  Kings  discussed  above.] 

I  he  Style  of  Chronicles  is  peculiar.  It  exhibits  certain 
features  of  vocabulary  and  syntax  which  point  to  linguis¬ 
tic  decadence.  Tiiere  are  also  a  number  of  mannerisms 
which  are  peculiar  to  the  compiler  himself.^ 

To  determine  the  historical  value  of  the  Book  demands 
a  discriminating  judgment.  Allowance  must  be  made 
for  the  compiler’s  very  special  point  of  view  in  surveying 
the  past.  The  Chronicler’s  survey  is  rather  in  the 
nature  of  a  church  history  of  Israel  from  the  point  of 
view  of  post-Exilic  Jewish  orthodoxy^  than  a  mere  narra¬ 
tive  of  events.  ^The  traditional  material  is  refracted 
through  a  strange  and  foreign  medium^  the  spirit  of 
post-Exilic  Judaism’  (Wellhausen).  His  work  is  thus 
of  value  more  particularly  as  marking  a  special  stage  in 
Jewish  religious  views^  than  as  a  purely  historical  piece 
of  literature.  Its  place  in  the  Jewish  Canon  suggests 
that  it  was  never  intended  to  be  allowed  to  supersede 
the  earlier  historical  books,  nor  indeed  to  be  put  on  a 
level  with  them  as  history.  In  one  department,  how¬ 
ever,  his  work  is  of  great  historical  value,  viz.  in 
matters  concerning  the  Temple-worship  in  post-Exilic 
times,  and  especially  in  details  as  to  the  Temple-music. 
Here  the  Chronicler  speaks  with  the  first-hand  authority 
of  an  expert. 

{b)  Ezra-Nehemiaii. 

—Commentary  by  Ryle  (in  Camb.  Bible);  for  the 
history,  P.  H.  Hunter,  After  the  Exile  (1890);  [for  the 
most  recent  critical  discussion  of  the  historical  iwoblems. 


i  See  the  list  in  Driver,  op.  cit.  pp.  502-507, 


90 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LITERATURE 


cf.  Rosters’  article  Ezra-Nehemiah  in  the  Encycl.  Bill.,  and 
the  works  of  E.  Meyer,  Torrey,  and  Sellin.] 


Title  and  Contents. — Ezra  and  Neliemiah  form  in  the 
Hebrew  Canon  a  single  book — Ezra. 

This  appears  from  citations  in  the  Talmud,  as  well  as  from  the 
Masoretic  subscription  that  follows  Neh.  xiii.  31.  In  the  LXX. 
the  books  are  still  one,  appearing  as  II.  E&dras  [the  LXX. 
I.  Esdras  is  a  separate  compilation] ;  the  LXX.  exhibits  a  text 
superior  in  some  respects  to  the  Masoretic  text.  Jerome  divided 
the  Book  into  two,  viz.  the  first  Book  of  Ezra  and  the  second 
Book  of  Ezra  (:=our  Neliemiah);  the  latter  also  went  by  the 
name  of  Nehemia,  which  gradually  became  the  more  common 
one.  From  the  Christians  the  division  into  two  books  has  passed 
into  the  printed  Hebrew  Bibles. 

In  order  to  be  able  to  follow  the  sequence  of  events  recorded  in 
Ezra-Nehemiah,  the  following  dates  must  be  kept  in  mind. 


Chronological  Table. 


"B  C 

.b39.  Fall  of  Babylon. 

538.  Cyrus  issues  a  decree  allow¬ 
ing  exiles  to  return. 

.529.  Cambyses. 

,521.  Darius  Hystaspis.  Per¬ 
sian  Period  begins. 
(521-332). 

520.  Haggai  and  Zechariah. 

520-510.  Building  of  the  second 
Temple. 

490.  Battle  of  Marathon. 

485-404.  Xerxes  i. 

404-424.  Artaxerxes  i.  (Lon- 
gimanus). 

458.  Return  of  Exiles  under 
Ezra  (Malachi  ?) 

445.  First  visit  of  Neliemiah 
(appointed  Governor)  to 
Jerusalem  (Neh.  ii.  1). 


B.C. 

444.  Promulgation  of  P  (?)  by 
Ezra. 

432.  Nehemiah’s  second  visit  to 
Jerusalem  (Neh.  xiii. 
Of.). 

424.  Darius  ii.  (Nothus). 

404.  Artaxerxes  iii.  (Mnemon). 
358-338.  Artaxerxes  iii.  (Ochus). 
335-331.  Darius  m.  (Codo- 
mannus). 

351-331.  Jaddua,  high  priest 
(Neh,  xii.  11). 

332.  Battle  of  Issus :  Persian 
Empire  overthrown  by 
Alexander  the  Great. 
Greek  Period  begins. 


The  history  included  in  the  Book  embraces  the  period 
from  the  issue  of  Cyrus’  decree  (538  b.c,  )to  the  second 
visit  of  Nehemiah  to  Jerusalem  (in  432  b.c.).  But  it  is 
not  narrated  continuously  ;  details  are  restricted  to  cer¬ 
tain  points  of  time  or  occasions  of  importance  :  viz.  the 
return  and  building  of  the  Temple  (53G-51G  b.c.)^  and 
the  visits  of  Ezra  and  Nehemiah  in  458^  444,  and  432  b.c. 

(1)  Ezra  i.-vi. :  The  retnrn  and  rebuilding  of  the  Temple 


HISTORICAL  BOOKS  OUTSIDE  HEXATEUCH  91 


(ch.  i.,  Cyrus’  decree  ;  ii,,  list  of  returning  exiles  ;  iii.,  altar  of 
Temple  re-erected — Feast  of  Tabernacles — foundation-stone  of 
Temple  laid  ;  iv.,  decree  prohibiting  building  of  Temple — Rehum, 
Shlmshai,  etc.;  v.  1-5,  building  of  Temple  resumed  in  520  b.c. 
(at  instance  of  the  prophets  Haggai  and  Zechariah) ;  v.  6-vi.  12, 
correspondence  between  the  satrap  Tatnai  and  Darius  ;  vi.  13-32, 
completion  of  the  Temple  in  515,  and  its  solemn  dedication.  [An 
interval  of  nearl}^  sixty  years  is  passed  over  in  silence.] 

(2)  Ezra  vii.-x. :  Ezra^s  mission  (vii. ,  Ezra  sent  by  Artaxerxes 
from  Babylonia  to  Jerusalem  as  royal  commissioner;  viii.,  list  of 
heads  of  families  who  journey  with  him.  Arrival  in  Jerusalem  ; 
ix.,  steps  against  the  foreign  wives  ;  x.,  assembly  of  the  people — 
a  commission  chosen  to  deal  with  the  mixed  marriages.  The 
narrative  abruptly  breaks  off  with  an  enumeration  of  the  7)ien  who 
had  7na7'ried  stra^ige  women. 

(3)  Neh.  i.-xiii.  3  ;  Nehemiah/'s  first  Governorship  (i.-ii.,  Nehe- 
miah,  a  Jewish  cup-bearer  of  Artaxerxes,  gets  himself  appointed 
Persian  governor  of  Judah  early  in  444  b.c.;  arrival  in  Jerusalem 
—night  ride  round  ruined  walls  ;  iii.,  work  of  building  allotted  to 
various  families  ;  iv.,  regulations  for  protecting  the  work  of 
building;  v.,  social  reforms;  vi.,  wall  completed  after  fifty-two 
days;  vii.,  repetition  of  list  in  Ezra  ii.;  viii.-x.,  reading  of  The 
Book  of  the  Law  of  Moses,  and  solemn  engagement  to  observe  the 
same ;  xi.,  every  tenth  man  selected  to  be  an  inhabitant  of 
Jerusalem.  List  of  heads  of  families :  xii.  1-26,  list  of  the  priests 
and  Levites ;  xii.  27-43,  dedication  of  the  walls  of  Jerusalem  ; 

xii.  44-47,  overseers  appointed  over  the  Temple-chambers ; 

xiii.  1-3,  separation  of  all  foreigners. 

(4)  Neh.  xiii.  4-31 :  Notices  respecting  Nehemiah’ s  second 
Governorship  (from  432  b.c.  oiiAvard). 

Analysis  and  Sources. — The  episodic  character  of  the 
work  as  a  whole  will  be  apparent  from  the  brief  resume 
just  given  of  its  contents.  The  critical  analysis  of  the 
Book  makes  clear  that  it  is  a  compilation  ;  and  there  is 
no  doubt  that  the  compiler  is  the  Chronicler.  In  writing 
his  narrative  the  compiler  made  use  of  some  important 
sources,  the  most  valuable  being  the  personal  memoirs 
of  Ezra  and  Nehemiah,  passages  from  which  he  quotes. 

(1)  The  first  part  of  Ezra  (ch.  i.-vi.)  is  a  compilation 
which  contains  many  marks  of  the  compiler’s  hand. 
Ch.  i.  and  iii,-iv.  5  are  his  work  ;  ch.  ii.  (  =  Neh.  vii.) 
is  borrowed  from  the  memoirs  of  Nehemiah  [see  below). 
Ch.  iv.  G-vi.  18  (all  but  the  first  two  verses  [iv.  G-7]  of 
this  section  are  written  in  Aramaic)  are  of  a  different 
character.  Here  the  Chronicler  has  made  use  of  a  special 
(written)  Aramaic  source,  wTiich  contained  the  history 
of  the  building  of  the  Temple  and  the  city  walls.  From 


92  OLD  TESTAMENT  LITERATURE 

this  source  Ezra  iv.  8-22  and  v.  1-vi.  16  liave  been  taken 
verbally. 

vi.  lb-18,  though  written  in  Aramaic,  must  be  the  com2)osition 
of  the  compiler,  as  the  verses  belong  logically  with  vi.  19-22, 
which  are  undoubtedly  the  compiler’s.  The  section  iv.  G-23  has 
been  misplaced  by  the  compiler.  It  refers  to  the  rebuilding  not 
of  the  Temple,  but  of  the  city  walls  (some  sixty  years  later). 
Its  proper  position  would  be,  probably,  between  Ezra  x.  and 
Neh.  i. 

(2)  Ezra  vii.-x. — Uliis  section  of  the  Book  contains  a 
long  extract  (vii.  27-ix.  15)  which  is  written  throughout 
in  the  first  person,  and  which  is  so  vivid  and  circum¬ 
stantial  that  it^  is  generally  accepted  as  an  authentic 
excerpt  from  Ezra’s  personal  memoirs.  From  these 
memoirs  the  imperial  firman  given  (in  Aramaic)  in  vii. 
12-26  will  also  have  been  extracted.  ’J’he  opening  verses 
(vii.  1-11)  are  by  another  hand,  probably  the  Chronicler’s. 
The  memoirs  break  off  at  ix.  15.  What  follows  is  by  a 
different  hand,  but  not  the  compiler’s.  It  is  probable 
that  the  compiler  is  not  citing  the  memoirs  directly,  but 
as  embodied  in  another  work,  to  which  Ezra  x.  belongs 
(see  below). 

(3)  Extracts  from  Nehemiah’s  Memoirs:  (a)  Neh.  i. 
1-vii.  5. — At  the  beginning  of  the  Book  of  Nehemiah 
we  meet  witli  a  long  section  where  the  1st  pers. 
sing,  is  used  throughout,  viz.  ch.  i.  1-vii.  5.  These 
chapters  are  indubitably  authentic  extracts  from  Nehe¬ 
miah’s  personal  memoirs.  ’They  are  distinguished  by 
individual  characteristics  which 'help  us  to  form  a  dis¬ 
tinct  idea  of  the  writer’s  personality.  Enthusiasm  for  a 
great  idea,  and  unselfish  devotion  to  its  realisation,  are 
marked  features.  From  v.  14  it  is  clear  that  the  narra¬ 
tive  can  only  have  been  put  into  its  present  form  some 
years  after  tbe  events  recorded.  Doubts  have  been 
raised  as  to  the  authenticity  of  vi.  15  (the  walls  finished 
in  fifty-two  days),  but  the  objection  is  not  a  fatal  one. 

It  should  be  noted,  however,  that  according  to  Josephus 
(Ant.,  xi.  V.  8)  the  building  of  the  walls  lasted  two  years  and 
eight  months.  On  what  authority  Josephus  bases  this  assertion 
is  not  known,  [iii.  1-32,  which  contains  a  list  of  persons  who 
helped  to  rebuild  the  walls  of  Jerusalem,  has  also  been  the 
subject  of  doubt.] 

(h)  Neh.  vii.  6-73«.— This  section  contains  a  list  of  the 
exiles  who  returned  with  Zerubbabel,  which  Nehemiah 


HISTORICAL  BOOKS  OUTSIDp]  HEXATEUtTI  93 

(vii.  3)  says  he  ^ found’  ;  it  also  apj)ears  in  Ezra  ii.  with 
slight  differences.  It  forms  a  natural  and  easy  continua¬ 
tion  of  vii.  and  probably  from  the  first  stood  as  a 
constituent  element  in  Nehemiah’s  memoirs. 

(c)  Neh.  xi. — This  chapter,  which  contains  a  list  of 
persons  who  drew  lots  to  reside  at  Jerusalem,  and  other 
details  regarding  the  settlement  of  the  capital,  also  stood 
probably  in  the  original  memoirs.  The  list — wliich 
partly  recurs  in  I.  Chron.  ix.  1-17-  is  to  he  regarded  as  the 
immediate  continuation  of  ch.  vii.  (with  Ewald)  and  re¬ 
fers  to  measures  taken  by  Zerubbabel.  Doubtless  it  was 
followed  in  the  memoirs  by  an  account  of  what  Nehemiah 
did  to  resume  and  complete  these  measures  {cf.  vii.  4-5), 
but  this  has,  unfortunately,  not  been  preserved  to  us. 

(r/)  Neh.  xii.  27-43. — Account  of  the  dedication  of  the 
walls.  Notice  the  resumption  of  the  1st  pers.  sing.  (vers. 
81 ,  38,  40).  This  passage  is  an  excerpt  from  the  memoirs, 
but  has  been  abridged  and  revised  by  the  compiler. 

^  (fi)  Neh.  xiii.  4-31. — Another  extract  from  the  memoirs, 
giving  details  of  a  time  some  twelve  years  or  more  later 
than  that  referred  to  in  the  earlier  extracts.  It  deals 
with  Nehemiah’s  second  visit. 

(4)  Passages  in  Nehemiah  not  derived  from  the  Memoirs. 
— (1)  CA.  vii.  73b-x.  40  (39). — This  long  section  breaks 
the  connection  which,  as  is  generally  agreed,  exists 
between  vii.  78«  and  ch.  xi.  In  its  present  form  it  is 
doubtless  due  to  the  compiler ;  but  it  contains  so  many 
details  of  apparently  an  authentic  character,  its  repre¬ 
sentation  is  often  so  vivid,  that  it  seems  probable  that  the 
work  of  an  eye-witness  has  been  used  and  worked  up  by 
the  compiler  in  producing  the  present  narrative.  Pro¬ 
bably  ix.  0-x.  40  has  been  taken  over  directly  from  the 
memoirs  of  Ezra  (the  LXX.  ascribes  the  prayer  beginning 
in  ix.  6  to  Ezra  :  ^  And  Ezra  said  ’).  The  whole  section, 
^therefore,  can  be  regarded  as  of  first-rate  authority. 

(2)  Ch.  xii.  1-2G. — A  list  of  priests  and  Levites  who 
returned  with  Zerubbabel.  Notice  how  the  priestly 
genealogy  is  carried  far  down  below  Nehemiah’s  time,  as 
far,  in  fact,  as  the  reign  of  Darius  the  Persian  (ver.  22), 
i.c.  Darius  iir.,  Codomannus  (reigned  i?.c.  335-331).  The 
high  priest  Jaddua  mentioned  in  ver.  II  is  known  from 
Josephus  to  have  been  a  contemporary  of  Alexander  the 
Great. 


94 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LITERATURE 


The  sources  used  by  the  Chronicler  in  compiling  Ezra  -Nehemiah 
will  thus  have  been  (a)  an  Aramaic  one,  written  not  earlier  than 
450  B.C.,  which  contained  the  history  of  the  building  of  the 
Temple  and  the  walls.  From  this  Ezra  iv.  8-22,  v.  1-vi.  16 
appear  to  have  been  taken  directly. 

(6)  A  work  which  contained  the  memoirs  of  Ezra  andNehemiah 
worked  i;p  into  the  narrative  of  a  later  author.  From  this  work 
the  Chronicler  borrowed  Ezra  ii.,  and  the  main  body  of  the  whole 
Book,  viz.  all  from  Ezra  vii.  12-Neh.  xi.  36,  as  well  as  Neh.  xii. 
27-43,  and  xiii.  4-31.  It  is  possible  that  this  work  is  identical 
with  the  Book  of  the  Chronicles  referred  to  in  Neh.  xii.  23.  [The 
rest  of  the  Book  is  the  composition  of  the  Chronicler.] 

(5)  Historical  Value  of  the  Book. — On  the  whole,  recent 
criticism  has  been  favourable  to  the  older  view  as  to  the 
essential  trustworthiness  of  the  narrative  of  events  given 
in  Ezra-Nehemiah.  Recently  the  view  has  been  put 
forward  that  the  Artaxerxes  mentioned  is  the  second  of 
that  name.  If  this  is  accepted,  Ezra’s  visit  and  work  of 
reform  fall  in  the  year  398.  Kosters  goes  much  further 
than  this. 

^  According  to  him,  a  return  of  exiles  in  the  second 
year  of  Cyrus  did  not  take  place  at  all ;  the  building  of 
the  Tem])le  and  the  walls  was  rather  the  work  of  the 
population  that  had  remained  behind  in  the  land  (II. 
Kings  XXV.  12),  of  whom  Zerubhabel  and  Nehemiah  were 
governors  ;  Ezra’s  visit  and  work  of  reform  fall  in  the 
second  governorsliip  of  Nehemiah,  after  the  events 
narrated  in  Neh.  xiii.  4-31.  Ezra  arrived  for  the  first 
time  after  433  ;  first  of  all  the  community  was  recon¬ 
stituted  by  the  dissolution  of  the  mixed  marriages,  and 
then  solemnly  bound  to  the  observance  of  the  Law  which 
had  been  brought  with  him  by  Ezra  :  the  first  return- 
journey  under  Zerubhabel,  with  all  those  who  joined 
themselves  with  him,  has  been  invented  by  the  Chronicler, 
who  reversed  the  order  of  events.  Finally,  according  to 
Torrey,  the  ^1’  passages,  with  the  exception  of  Neh.  i.  2. 
(maiiiiy)  and  iii.  33-vi.  19  (mainly),  have  been  fabricated’** 
by  the  Chronicler,  who  in  them  created  his  masterpiece  ; 
and  Nehemiah  also  belongs  to  the  reign  of  Artaxerxes  ii.’ 
(Cornill). 

Kosters’  theory  has  been  energetically  opposed  by 
Wellhausen,  and  since  Ed.  Meyer’s  demonstration  of 
the  essential  authenticity  of  the  documents  embodied  in 
Ezra  iv.-vii.,  the  extreme  form  of  the  critical  theory  may 
be  regarded  as  having  lost  most  of  its  plausibility. 


B.  THE  PROPHETIC  LITERATURE 

CHAPTER  III.— THE  WRITING  PROPHETS  i 

Literature.  Robertson  Smith,  The  Prophets  of  Israel  (new  ed. 
edited  by  Professor  Cheyne) ;  cf.  also  Ewald’s  Prophets  of 
the  Old  Testament,  5  vols.  (English  transL),  1867-1868; 
A.  F.  Kirkpatrick,  The  Doctrine  of  the  Prophets ;  the  artt. 
Prophetic^  Literature  in  Encycl.  Bibl. :  Prophecy  and 
Prophets  in  Hastings’  D.  B. ;  and  the  volume  mentioned  at 
foot  of  the  page  :  also  The  Hehrevj  Prophets  in  the  Revised 
Version  (annotated)  (4  vols.,  Oxford  University  Press). 

§  1.  The  Book  of  Isaiah. 

Literature.— The  commentaries  of  Cheyne  (2  vols.),  Delitzsch 
(3 vols.),  G.  A.  Smith  (2  vols.),  Skinner  (Camb.  Bible,  2  vols.), 
Whitehouse  (2  vols..  Century  Bible),  and  G.  Wade 
(  Westminster  Commentaries,’  1911) ;  Cheyne’s  volume 
on  Isaiah  in  Haupt’s  Sacred  Books  of  the  Old  Testament 
{S.B.0.2\)  (an  English  translation  based  on  a  critical  text 
■wdth  notes) ;  The  Book  of  Isaiah,  in  a  new  critical  transla¬ 
tion  wUh  notes  (1908),  by  the  present  writer ;  Driver’s  Isaiah  : 
his  Life  and  Times  (2nd  ed.).  [The  following  section  should 
be  read  in  conjunction  with  Ottley,  H.P.,  pp.  30-38.] 

The  Book  of  Isaiah^  as  it  lies  before  us  in  our  Bibles^ 
has  had  a  long  and  complicated  history.  It  embodies  a 
series  of  prophetic  collections  which  themselves  must 
have  passed  through  a  separate  literary  history  before 
they  were  embodied  in  the  present  canonical  Book.  The 
.  oldest^  attestation  of  the  Book^  in  the  form  in  which  it 
now  lies  before  us,  is  that  of  Ben  Sira  in  Eccledasticus 
(xlviii.  20-25).  By  the  time  that  Ben  Sira  wrote 
(c.  200  B.c.)  it  is  clear  from  the  passage  just  quoted  that 
substantially  the  Book  of  Isaiah,  as  we  now  possess  it, 

^  The  following  chapter  has  been  Avritten  with  the  volume 
on  The  Hebrew  Prophets,  by  R.  L.  Ottley,  in  the  present  series  in 
view,  and  should  be  supplemented  by  it.  Canon  Ottley’s  book 
is  cited  below  as  ‘  Ottley,  H.P.’ 


95 


9G 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LITERATURE 


^  was  regarded  as  a  unity,  the  work  of  the  prophet  whose 
name  it  bears’  (Cornill). 

Articulation  of  the  Book,— The  entire  Book  divides  into 
two  well-defined  parts,  {a)  ch.  i.-xxxix.  and  {b)  xl.-lxvi. 
Each  of  these  had  a  separate  literary  history  before  they 
were  united  into  a  single  whole. 

{(i)  Ch.  i.-xxxix.  Here  ch.  xxxvi.-xxxix.  are  clearly  separable 
from  what  precedes.  They  form  a  historical  appendix  which  has 
been  excerpted  from  the  Book  of  Kings  (they  correspond  to 
11.  Kings  xviii.  17-xx.  19).  They  were  probably  added  to  Isa.  i.- 
xxxvi.  after  the  time  of  the  Chronicler,  but  before  that  of  Ben 
Sira,  i.e.  between  300  and  200  b.o.  Ch.  i.-xxxv.  are  a  combination 
of  several  smaller  collections,  viz. : — 

i.  An  introduction  to  the  whole  Book  (ch.  i.). 

ii.  The  first  group,  containing  the  first  collection  of  Isaiah’s 

prophecies  (ch.  ii.-xii. ). 

iii.  The  second  group,  containing  a  number  of  oracles  on 

foreign  nations  (some  Isaianic)  (ch.  xiii.-xxiii.). 

iv.  The  third  group,  dealing  mainly  with  the  deliverance 

of  Jerusalem,  with  an  eschatological  preface  and 
appendix  (ch.  xxiv,-xxxv). 

{h)  Ch.  xl.-lxvi.  Here  two  main  divisions  are  distinguishable, 
viz. : — 

i.  Ch.  xl.-xlviii.  (with  a  later  appendix,  ch.  xlix.-lv.). 

The  work  of  the  Babylonian  prophet— the  ‘great 
unknown,’  who  is  usually  styled  Deutero-Isaiah. 

ii.  Ch.  Ivi.-lxvi.  Mainly  the  work  of  an  author,  it  would 

seem,  who  Avrote  in  Jerusalem  shortly  before  the 
first  arrival  of  Nehemiah,  i.e.  before  445  b.o.  This 
Avriter  is  sometimes  styled  the  ‘  Trito-Isaiah.’ 

The  Dating  of  Isaiah’s  Prophecies. — Isaiah’s  active  pro¬ 
phetic  life  extended  from  the  death-year  of  King  Uzziah, 
740  15. c.,  probably  down  to  the  eventful  year  of  Sen¬ 
nacherib’s  campaign  against  Jerusalem  (701  n.c.),  and 
possibly  even  later.  During  this  period  events  of  the 
greatest  importance  took  place  in  Western  Asia,  which 
Avere  closely  connected  Avith  the  renewed  aggressiA'^e 
activity  of  tlie  Assyrian  Power.  The  genuine  prophecies 
of  Isaiah  revolve  mainly  around  three  great  political 
crises,  due  either  directly  or  indirectly  to  Assyrian 
intervention,  viz.  (a)  the  Syro-Ephraimite  war  in  784  b.c. 
(Pekah  of  Israel  and  Rezin  of  Damascus  invade  Judah 
with  the  object  of  forcing  Ahaz  to  join  an  anti-Assyrian 
coalition)  ;  (b)  the  fall  of  Samaria  in  721  to  the  Assyrians, 
and  the  end  of  the  Northern  Kingdom  ;  and  (c)  the 


THE  WRITING  PROPHETS 


97 


events  leading  up  to  Sennacherib’s  invasion  of  Judah  in 

701  B.C. 

A  number  of  Isaiah’s  prophecies  fall  within  or  shortly  before 
these  events.  Such  are  : — 

{a)  Before  the  Syro-Ephraimite  invasion  (before  734  b.c.): 
Isa.  ii.  4-22 ;  iii.  1-15  ;  iii.  16-iv.  1 ;  v.  1-24 ;  ix.  7-x.  4  and  v.  25- 
30 ;  xvii.  1-11 ;  vi.  1-11. 

(6)  During  the  Syro-Ephraimite  invasion  (734  b.c.):  ch.  vii. 
1-17 ;  viii.  1-4. 

(c)  Within  the  period  ivhich  ends  with  the  fall  of  Samaria 
(721  B.c. ):  ch.  viii.  1-10  (sometime  between  734  and  723  b.c.); 
viii.  11-15  (slightly  earlier);  xxviii.  1-4  (723  b.c.). 

{d)  The  folloiving  prophecies  of  Isaiah  fall  within  the  eventful 
years  705-701  b.c.  :  ch.  xxviii.  7-22  (about  703  b.c.);  xxix.  1-8, 
9-11  (12),  13-14  (same  date) ;  xxix.  15  (16),  xxx.  1-5,  6-7,  8-17, 
xxxi.  1-9  (703-702  b.c.);  i.  2-17  (701  b.c.)  and  xxii.  1-14 
701  B.c. 

Analysis  of  Isaiah  i.-xxxix. — Isaiah’s  genuine  prophecies 
are  embedded,  as  will  appear,  in  collections  which  con¬ 
tain  a  considerable  amount  of  non-Isaianic  matter.  The 
first  part  of  the  Book  of  Isaiah  consists  of 

i.  A  general  preface  to  the  whole  collection  of  Isaianic 
prophecies  (ch.  i.),  which  embodies  a  summary  of  Isaiah’s 
teaching. 

ii.  First  Collection  of  Isaiah’ s  prophecies  (ch.  ii.-xii.). 

This  includes  minor  collections  :  viz. 

(а)  The  earliest  minor  collection  (ii.  1-iv.  6),  with  an  eschato¬ 
logical  introduction  (ii.  2-4)  and  conclusion  (iv.  1-4) ;  largely 
Isaianic. 

(б)  The  parable  of  the  Vineyard  and  its  application  (ch.  v. 
1-24) ;  Isaianic,  c.  735  b.c. 

(c)  The  second  minor  collection  (vi.  1-ix.  6),  containing  Isaiah’s 
account  of  his  inaugural  vision  (ch.  vi.),  passages  written  about 
the  time  of  the  Syro-Ephraimitish  invasion,  culminating  in  the 
description  of  the  Messianic  King  (vii.-ix.  6) :  Isaianic. 

{d)  An  oracle  directed  mainly  against  Northern  Israel  (ix.  7-x. 
4  and  V.  26-30)  ending  with  the  refrain  : 

For  all  this  His  anger  is  not  turned  hack 
And  His  hand  is  outstretched  still.  (Isaianic.) 

(e)  A  fine  Isaianic  prophecy  contrasting  Jahveh’s  plan  and  that 
of  the  Assyrians  (x.  5-15  with  xiv.  24-27):  date  between  711  and 
701  probably. 

(/)  An  oracle  describing  the  destruction  of  Assyria  (x.  16-23). 

[g]  An  oracle  of  the  same  subject,  which  contains  fragments  of 
Isaiah’s  writing  of  about  722  b.c.  (edited  late)  (x.  24-34). 


G 


98 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LITERATURE 


(h)  Second  description  of  the  Messianic  King  (probably 
Isaianic  :  after  701  b.c.), 

{i)  Two  appendices  (xi.  10-16,  the  return  of  the  exiles,  and 
formation  of  the  Messianic  community  ;  and  xii.,  a  lyrical  Epi¬ 
logue  to  the  first  complete  Isaianic  collection). 

iii.  An  intermediate  collection  of  oracles^  mainly  concern¬ 
ing  foreign  nations  (ch.  xiii.-xxiii.). 

(а)  xiii.  1-xiv.  23  :  The  fall  of  Babylon  (exilic). 

(б)  xiv.  24-27  (misplaced  conclusion  to  x.  5  f  ?). 

(c)  xiv.  28-32 :  On  Philistia :  720  b.c. 

[d)  xv.-xvi. :  On  Moab  :  date  of  main  prophecy  uncertain  (not 
Isaianic) :  with  an  Isaianic  fragment  appended  of  711  b.c.). 

{e)  xvii.  1-11 :  The  fall  of  Syria  and  Ephraim,  735  b.c. 

(/)  xvii.  12-14:  An  Isaianic  fragment  appended  (c.  702  b.c.) 

(р)  xviii.  :  An  address  to  the  Ethiopian  ambassadors  :  702  b.c. 

(h)  xix.  :  On  the  fall  of  Egypt. 

[i)  XX.  :  Captivity  of  Mugri  and  Cush  predicted :  an  appended 
Isaianic  piece,  c.  711  b.c. 

(,/)  xxi. :  A  vision  of  the  fall  of  Babylon,  with  two  other  oracles  : 
end  of  exile  [xxi.  16-17  may  be  an  Isaianic  fragment]. 

{k)  xxii.  1-4 :  Oracle  on  the  Valley  of  Vision,  c.  701  b.c.  ;  vers. 
15-23  :  Against  Shebna  (Isaianic,  with  later  appendix). 

{1)  xxiii.  :  The  fall  of  Tyre. 

iv.  A  third  collection  of  Isaianic  prophecies,  dealing  mainly 
with  the  deliverance  of  Jerusalem :  with  an  eschatological 
Preface  and  Appendix  (ch.  xxiv.-xxxv.). 

(a)  The  eschatological  preface,  consisting  of  passages  partly 
descriptive,  partly  lyrical,  and  partly  apocalyptic  in  character : 
marked  by  striking  stylistic  peculiarities  (ch.  xxiv.-xxvii.  :  date 
perhaps  332  b.c.  about). 

[h]  Prophecies,  largely  Isaianic,  dealing  mainly  with  the 
deliverance  of  Jerusalem,  with  some  post-exilic  additions  and 
imsertions  (ch.  xxviii.-xxxiii. ) :  ch.  xxxii.  and  xxxiii.  contain  a 
series  of  Messianic  appendices. 

(с)  The  eschatological  appendix  (ch.  xxxiv. -xxxv. ) :  ch.  xxxiv. 
is  a  description  of  the  Divine  judgment  on  Edom  and  the  nations, 
and  ch.  xxxv.  is  a  picture  of  the  Golden  Age  that  is  to  follow. 

V.  A  historical  Appendix  to  the  collected  form  of  Isaianic 
prophecies  (ch.  xxxvi.-xxxix). 

The  section  contains  narrative  accounts  of  three  important 
episodes  ‘each  of  which  illustrates  the  commanding  influence 
exercised  by  the  prophet  in  the  reign  of  Hezekiah’  (Skinner). 
These  are  (1)  a  twofold  (parallel)  account  of  Sennacherib’s  failure 
to  secure  the  surrender  of  Jerusalem  (ch.  xxxvi.-xxxvii.) ; 
(2)  Hezekiah’s  sickness  and  recovery  (ch.  xxxviii.) ;  and 


THE  WRITING  PROPHETS 


99 


(3)  MBrod&cli-Baladan  s  6nibcissy  to  Hezokiali  (ch.  xxxix. ). 
There  is  no  doubt  these  chapters  were  excerpted  from  the 
canonical  Book  of  Kings.  "With  some  variations  they  correspond 
with  II.  Kings  xviii.  13-xx.  19,  and  a  comparison  of  the  two 
clearly  demonstrates  the  superior  character  of  the  recension 
in  Kings.  From  the  latter  there  are  only  two  important  points 
of  divergence  in  Isaiah,  viz.  {a)  the  omission  of  the  section  con¬ 
tained  in  II.  Kings  xviii.  14-16,  and  [h]  the  insertion  in  the  Isaiah 
text  of  Hezekiah’s  psalm  of  thanksgiving  (xxxviii.  9-20),  from 
another  (and  later)  source.  [The  narrative  in  xxxvi.-xxxvii. 
probably  belonged  originally  to  a  collection  of  propheticai 
biographies,  which  were  written  for  purposes  of  edification  rather 
than  strict  historical  record.  Thence  they  were  excerpted 
presumably  by  the  compiler  of  Kings.^ 

Analysis  of  Isaiah  xl.-lxvi. — In  passing"  from  ch.  xxxix. 
to  xl.,  we  can  hardly  fail  to  be  conscious  of  having" 
entered  a  totally  different  region  of  prophetic  literature. 
Ch.  i.  xxxix.  are  largely  made  up,  as  we  have  seen,  of 
fragments  and  short  sections.  Rut  in  ch.  xl.  ff.  the 
phenomena  are  totally  different.  Here  we  are  at  once 
confronted  with  a  long  and  connected  prophetic  discourse 
(ch.  xl.-xlviii.)— a  purely  literary  production — which  is 
marked  by  unity  of  style  and  thought,  and  consistency 
of  historic  background. 

What  that  background  is,  is  clear  enough.  We  are 
no  longer  in  the  world  of  the  prophet  Isaiah  of 
Jerusalem.  Assyria  and  its  monarchs — Sargon,  Sen¬ 
nacherib — are  never  so  much  as  mentioned.  Another 
empire  has  become  the  oppressive  world-power — that  of 
Babylon  — and  the  writer  of  these  chapters  is  looking 
forward  with  breathless  eagerness  to  the  coming  deliver¬ 
ance,  the  prospect  of  which  is  beginning  to  dawn.  The 
Babylonian  Exile  is  not  predicted  but  presupposed. 

1  he  writer  who  hails  Cyrus  by  name  as  the  deliverer — 
is  obviously  living  in  'the  later  years  of  the  Exile 
(probably  he  wrote  soon  after  548  n.c.). 

In  the  space  at  our  command  it  is  impossible  to  give 
full  details  of  the  analysis  of  these  chapters.  They  fall 
naturally  into  three  divisions:  (a)  ch.  xl.-xlviii.  ;  (5) 
xlix.-lv.  ;  and  (c)  Ivi.-lxvi.  ;  {a)  and  (5)  are  the  work  of 
Heutero-Isaiah  (the  writer  alluded  to  above) ;  (c)  is  the 
work  probably  of  a  later  writer,  usually  termed  ^Trito- 
Isaiah.’ 

(a)  Ch.  xl.-xlviii.  form  the  original  prophecies  of  Deutero- 


100 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LITERATURE 


Isaiah.  This  section  was  probably  composed  between  546  and 
538  B,c.  It  opens  with  the  cry  of  consolation,  Counfort  ye,  comfort 
ye  my  people,  and  closes  with  the  triumphant  summons,  Come 
out  from  Babylon  (xlviii.  20).  The  author  writing  in  Babylonia, 
before  the  fall  of  Babylon,  addresses  a  message  of  consolation  and 
encouragement  to  the  exiles,  bidding  them  in  glowing  language 
to  make  ready  for  the  coming  deliverance  and  prepare  to  see  the 
divine  promises  of  restoration  brilliantly  fulfilled. 

(6)  Ch.  xlix.-lv.  form,  probably,  an  appendix  to  the  preceding, 
written  by  the  same  author,  some  years  later  (possibly  just  after 
the  issue  of  Cyrus’  decree,  permitting  the  return,  in  538).  The 
main  theme  of  these  chapters  is  the  re-establishment  and  glorious 
future  of  Israel  and  of  Zion.  They  conclude  (Iv.  1-13)  with  a  call 
to  embrace  the  coming  salvation. 

(c)  Ch.  Ivi.-lxvi. — Here  an  entirely  new  section  of  the  Book 
begins.  The  tone  and  outlook  are  usually  different.  Zion’s 
felicity — the  day  of  the  longed-for  salvation— has  not  yet 
dawned.  The  obstacle,  however,  is  no  longer  Babylon,  but 
godless  members  of  the  Jerusalem  community  and  heretics. 
Jerusalem  has  a  settled  population,  and  the  Temple  has  been 
rebuilt.  But  social  conditions  are  unsatisfactory— the  rich 
oppress  the  poor — and  the  old  Israelitish  population  of  the  land 
(which  had  been  left  behind  when  the  exiles  were  deported  to 
Babylonia)  is  unwilling  to  submit  to  the  ‘  yoke  of  the  Law.’ 

The  chapters  were  written,  apparently,  at  a  critical  time  when 
it  was  important  to  strengthen  the  faith  of  the  strict  religious 
party  by  kindling  hope  among  them  in  the  coming  salvation. 
They  were  perhaps  written  by  one  author — usually  styled  the 
‘  Trito-Isaiah  ’ — c.  450  b.c.  (a  few  years  before  the  arrival  of 
Nehemiah  in  Jerusalem).  But  ch.  Ix.-lxii.  strongly  recall  the 
manner  of  Deutero-Isaiah,  and  are  assigned  by  some  critics  to 
that  writer. 

[One  of  the  most  keenly  debated  questions  at  the  present  time 
is  the  question  of  the  so-called  ‘  Songs  of  the  Servant  of  Jahveh  ’ 
(xlii.  1-7  ;  xlix.  1-6  ;  1.  4-9  ;  and  lii.  13-liii.  12 — all  in  the  work  of 
Deutero-Isaiah).  Some  critics  maintain  the  view  that  these 
‘songs’  are  separable  from  their  present  context,  and  were  in 
fact  inserted  into  the  expanded  Book  of  Deutero-Isaiah  (ch.  xl.-lv.) 
after  its  completion  ;  but  whether  by  Deutero-Isaiah  himself,  or 
by  a  later  hand,  they  have  not  determined.  See  further  the 
present  writer’s  Isaiah,  pp.  194-198  and  on  lii.  13-liii.  ;  and  for 
the  Servant  of  Jahveh,  Driver’s  Isaiah,  pp.  140  f.,  149,  150-5, 
161, 175-180  and  207,  and  the  commentaries.] 

§  2.  Jeremiah. 

Literature. — Commentaries  :  in  Expositor’s  Bible,  2  vols.  (vol  i. 
by  C.  J.  Ball;  ii.  by  W.  H.  Bennett):  Book  of  J  eremiah : 

revised  translation  with  introductions  and  short  explanations  by 
S.  E.  Driver  (1906).  Cf.  also  Cheyne,  Jeremiah,  his  Life  and  Times 
(‘  Men  of  the  Bible’  Series) ;  and  J.  R.  Gillies,  Jeremiah,  the  Man 


THE  WRITING  PROPHETS 


101 


and  his  Message  (1907) :  gives  critical  reconstruction  of  text, 
following  Duhm  and  Cornill).  [The  following  section  should  be 
read  in  conjunction  with  Ottley,  H.P.,  pp.  52-61.] 


Chronological  Table. 


B.C. 

(i.'lO.  Josiah. 

626.  Jeremiah’s  call. 

621.  Discovery  of  Deuteronomy ; 
Josiah’s  Reformation. 

609.  Battle  of  Megiddo ;  death 
of  Josiah. 

609.  Jehoahaz. 

608.  Jehoiakim. 

604.  Defeat  of  Pharaoh  Necho 
at  Carchemish  by  Ne¬ 
buchadnezzar. 


B.C. 

597.  Jehoiachin. 

597.  First  siege  of  Jerusalem — 
Jehoiachin  and  flower 
of  nation,  including 
Ezekiel,  deported. 

596.  Zedekiah. 

586.  Destruction  of  Jerusalem; 
Exile. 


The  Prophet. — The  prophet  Jeremiah  belonged  to  a 
priestly  family  and  was  born  at  Anathoth  {cf.  I.  Kings  ii. 
26 ;  Josh.  xxi.  18)^  a  town  not  far  from  Jerusalem  (on 
the  north).  His  prophetic  ministry  was  carried  on 
mainly  in  Jerusalem,  where  he  made  his  first  public  appear¬ 
ance  as  a  prophet  in  the  thirteenth  year  of  King  Josiah 
{cf.  Jer.  i.  2,  xxv.  8),  i.e.  626  b.c.,  five  years  before  the 
momentous  discovery  of  the  ^  Book  of  the  Law  ’  (some 
form  of  Deuteronomy)  by  Hilkiah  in  the  Temple. 
Jeremiah  played  a  specially  prominent  part  in  the 
critical  times  which  follow^ed  on  Jehoiakim’s  accession 
to  the  throne,  and  which  culminated  in  the  destruction 
of  Jerusalem  by  the  Chaldeans  in  o86  b.c.  The  prophet 
sternly  denounced  King  Zedekiah’s  breach  of  faith  with 
Nebuchadnezzar,  and  when  Jerusalem  was  besieged  a 
second  time,  declared  in  plain  language  (ch.  xxi.  1-10  ; 
cf.  xxxviii.  17  f.)  that  the  besiegers  wmuld  prevail.  The 
prophet  was  treated  with  consideration  by  the  Chaldeans, 
and  allowed  to  remain  where  he  pleased.  The  last  we 
hear  of  him  is  that  he  was  carried  against  his  will  by 
some  Jews  who  had  been  left  behind  in  Palestine  down 
to  Egypt  (ch.  xlii.-xliv). 

The  Character  and  Origin  of  the  Book  of  Jeremiah. — ^  The 
hook  traditionally  handed  down  to  us  under  the  name  of 
Jeremiah  is  distinguished  from  all  the  rest  of  the 
prophetic  writings  by  the  prevalence  of  the  biographical 
element :  apart  from  ch.  Hi.,  chapters  xix.-xx.  6,  xxvi. 


102 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LITERATURE 


xxix.j  xxxiv.  and  xxxvi.-xlv.  are  purely  narrative  in 
character’  (Cornill).  The  narrative  is  objective  in  form 
(only  ch.  xxvii.  being-  written  in  the  1st  person).  This 
part  of  the  Book  shows  so  many  marks  of  circumstantial 
detail  and  is  written  so  vividly  that  it  must  be  regarded 
as  a  historical  source  of  the  first  rank. 

In  ch.  ocjDxm.  a  circumstantial  account  is  given  of  extra¬ 
ordinary  interest^  regarding  the  manner  in  which  the 
Book  originated.  It  appears  from  this  narrative  that  for 
twenty-three  years  the  prophet  used  oral  methods  only  in 
his  work ;  it  was  not  till  the  fourth  year  of  Jehoiakim 
(?.e.  604  B.c.)  that  he  received  the  commission  to  write 
out  all  the  words  which  Jahveh  had  hitherto  spoken  to 
him.  This  he  did  through  the  good  offices  of  a  younger 
friend  and  disciple,  Baruch,  who  wrote  down  the  book  at 
the  dictation  of  the  prophet.  This  roll  was  read,  a  year 
later,  at  a  great  assembly  (fast)  in  the  Temple,  was  cut 
up  and  thrown  into  the  fire  by  Jehoiakim,  and  again 
written  out,  with  additions  by  Baruch.  It  follows  that 
the  discourses  delivered  by  the  prophet  during  the  first 
half  of  his  ministry  are  preserved  only  in  a  later  (much 
abbreviated)  resume.  To  recover  this  original  roll  might 
appear  to  be  an  easy  task,  to  be  accomplished  by  the 
simple  process  of  separating  the  discourses  which  belong 
to  the  earlier  period. 

If  the  narrative  sections  are  omitted  these  comprise  the  follow¬ 
ing  :  ch.  i.,  ii.-vi.,  vii.-x.,  xi.-xii.  6,  xxv.  [also  xviii.].  But  a 
closer  examination  shows  that  these  cannot  possibly  have  stood 
originally  together  in  such  a  connection.  Ch.  iii.  16-18  breaks  the 
connection  between  iii.  5  and  19  ;  ix.  22,  23-x.  16  severs  the 
(logically)  continuous  verses  ix.  2l,  22,  and  x.  17. 

The  original  roll  was  doubtless  utilised  in  the  composi¬ 
tion  of  the  present  Book  of  Jeremiah,  but  has  not  been 
preserved  in  its  original  form. 

Articulation  of  the  Book. — The  Book  falls  into  two  main 
divisions:  {a)  ch.  i.-xlv.,  and  {h)  ch.  xlvi.-li.,  with  an 
appendix  (Hi). 

{a)  Ch.  i.-xlv.  These  chapters  can  again  be  divided  into 
two  groups,  viz.  :  the  narrative  passages  and  those  con¬ 
taining  the  discourses. 

i.  The  narrative  passages  consist  of  the  following  : — 
Ch.  xix.-xx.  6;  xxvi.-xxix.,  xxxiv.  and  xxxvi.-xlv. 
This  part  of  the  Book  appears  to  have  been 


103 


THE  WRITING  PROPHETS 


written  by  a  different  hand  from  that  which  com- 
,,  pi  ed  the  chapters  containing"  the  discourses. 

11.  The  chapters  containing  the  discourses  comprise  i. 

xi.-xviii.  [xx.  7-18],  xxi.  1-10  ;  xxi.^ 
-xxiii.  8  ;  xxni.  9-40  ;  xxiv.  ;  xxv.  ;  xxx.-xxxiii. ; 

(h)  Ch.  xlvi.-li.  form  a  collection  of  prophecies  con- 
cermng-  foreign  nations,  which  have  been  grouped 
together  ^  much  the  same  way  as  the  similar  collections 
in  Jsa.  xiii.-xxiii.,  and  Ezek.  xxv.-xxxii.  [The  appendix 
ch  111  IS  a  historical  account  of  the  capture  of  Jerusalem, 
and  the  exile  of  the  inhabitants,  which  has  been  ex¬ 
cerpted  by  the  compiler  from  the  Book  of  Kings  (II.  Kine-s 

OS'"*  omission  of  11.  Kings  xxv.  22- 

b).  The  text  of  this  section  of  Jeremiah  is  in  several 
details  superior  to  that  in  lungs.] 

Analysis  of  ch.  i.-xlv.— Here  the  oldest  material  is 
evidently  comprised  in  ch.  i.-x.  (except  x.  1-16)  xi  - 
xviii.,  and  xxv. 


Ch.  «.  contains  the  account  of  the  prophet’s  call  in  626  b.c. 
Thpv  presumably  Jeremiah’s  first  discourses. 

tawerale  an5l?0  b“c  J"™*' 

form  a  group  of  prophecies  belonging 
probably  to  the  early  years  of  Jehoiakim’s  reign  (608-5)  b.c. 

-16  against  idolatry  is  probably  a  later  insertion ;  it  interrupts 
the  connection  between  lx.  22  and  x.  17.]  " 

Ch.  xi.-xviii.  and  xxv.  are  less  uniform  in  contents  and  of 
various  d^es:  xi.  l-xii.  6  originally  spoken  soon  after  the  dis¬ 
covery  of  Deut^^^in  621  bc.  ;  xii.  7-17  dates  probably  from  598  b.c  • 

mrt^of'^tbp’^  f perhaps  the  laUer 

dmiffm  B  of  Jehoiakim:  xvii.  19-27,  on  the  Sabbath  (it  is 
doubtful  whether  this  is  of  Jeremian  authorship;  its  tone 
suggests  a  later  time ;  cf.  Neh.  xiii.  15-22);  ch.  xviii.  (lessons 
rom  the  potter]  probably  belongs  to  the  early  group,  before  604 
B.C.,  as  also  does  ch.  xxv.).  •/  o 


The  other  material  of  these  chapters,  apart  from  the 
naiiative  sections,  may  be  assigned  to  Jeremiah’s  work  in 
the  latter  part  of  his  career. 

Ch.  xlvi.-li.  (lii.).— The  group  of  oracles  against  foreign 
nations  contained  in  ch.  xlvi.-li.  is  closely  connected  with 

ch.  xxv.  (cf.  xxv.  19-26),  and  in  the  LXX.  text  is  actually 
inserted  in  ch.  xxv.  ^ 

The  oracles  are  directed  against  Egypt  (xlvi.),  the  Philistines 


104 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LITERATURE 


(xlvii.),  Moab  (xlviii.),  the  Aramonites  (xlix.  1-G),  Edom  (xlix.  7* 
22),  Damascus  (xlix.  23-27),  Kedar  (xlix.  28-33),  Elam  (xlix.  34- 
39),  Babylon  (l.-li.).  Of  these  the  last  is  certainly  not  Jeremian 
(l.-li.);  while  the  oracle  against  Elam  is  dated  in  the  reign  of 
Zedekiah.  The  remaining  seven  (including  xlviii.  in  an  earlier 
form)  may  have  stood  in  the  original  roll.  [Ch.  lii.,  as  already 
explained,  is  a  late  prose  appendix.] 

The  Double  Text  of  Jeremiah. — As  is  well  known^  the 
text  of  the  LXX.  in  Jeremiah  differs  more  completely 
from  the  Hebrew  than  is  the  case  with  any  other  Old 
Testament  hook.  These  differences  concern  («)  the 
arrangement,  and  {b)  the  extent  of  the  subject-matter. 

Thus  [a)  the  LXX.  exhibits  the  oracles  against  foreign  nations 
in  a  different  order  (viz.  Elam,  Egypt,  Babylon,  Philistia-Phceni- 
cia,  Edom,  Ammon,  Kedar,  Damascus,  and  Moab),  and  in  a 
different  place  (viz.  after  xxv.  13).  Here  the  order  of  the  oracles  is 
more  original  in  the  Hebrew  text,  and  their  position  more  original 
in  the  LXX.  (6)  The  LXX.  exhibits  a  much  shorter  form  of  text, 
some  2700  words  {i.e.  about  one-eighth  of  the  entire  book)  being 
Rnrepresented  in  it.  Many  of  the  omissions  are  unimportant ; 
but  some  are  substantial,  as  x.  6-8,  10  ;  xi.  7-8 ;  xxix.  14  (except 
two  words),  16-20 ;  xxxiii.  14-26  ;  xxxix.  4-13  ;  lii.  28-30.  Some 
of  these  omissions  are  due  to  accidental  causes  (homoioteleuton) ; 
others  indicate  a  text  superior  to  the  Hebrew.  On  the  whole,  the 
form  of  text  given  in  the  LXX.  is  ‘  purer  and  more  original.  But 
it  is  impossible  to  speak  with  accuracy  of  two  “recensions” — the 
agreement  of  both  forms  of  text  is  too  considerable,  and  their 
mutual  relationship  too  close  for  that ;  we  have  in  them  only 
two  different  editions  of  the  same  recension  ’  (Cornill). 


Growth  of  the  Book. — The  Book  of  Jeremiah  only 
reached  its  present  form  as  the  result  of  a  complicated 
process  of  literary  growth,  the  stages  of  which  cannot  be 
exactly  determined. 


Cornill,  in  his  edition  of  the  Hebrew  text  of  the  Book  in 
S.B.  0.  T.,  arranges  the  text  as  follows 

Part  I.  (containing  prophecies  written  by  J eremiah). 

(а)  The  first  section  contains  the  discourses  which  appear  to 

have  been  delivered  between  626  and  604  b.c.,  and  were, 
therefore,  included  in  the  original  ‘  roll  ’ :  viz.  ch.  i.  ; 
ii.-vi.  ;  iii.  6-16 ;  xi.  ;  xii.  1-6 ;  xviii.  ;  vii.  ;  viii.  ;  ix.  1-22 ; 
X.  17-24 ;  xxv.  (with  some  omissions) ;  xlvi.  1-12  (Egypt) ; 
xlvii.  1-7  (Philistines) ;  xlviii.  (Moab,  with  some  omissions) ; 
xlix.  1-6  (Ammon) ;  xlix.  7-21  (Edom) ;  xlix.  23-27 
(Damascus) ;  xlix.  28-33  (Kedar-Hazor). 

(б)  Discourses  from  the  fifth  year  of  Jehoiakim  to  the  end  of 

his  reign  (ch.  xiv.-xvii.  18,  omitting  xvii.  5-13 ;  xii.  7-17 ; 

XXXV.). 


THE  VTRITING  PROPHETS 


105 


(c)  Discourses  delivered  in  the  reign  of  Jehoiachin,  597  b.c. 
(oh.  xiii.). 

{d)  Discourses  delivered  in  the  reign  of  Zedekiah,  59G-586  b.c. 
(ch.  xxiv.  ;  xxix.,  with  large  omissions ;  xlix.  34-39;  xxii. ; 
xxiii ;  xxi.  ;  xx.  14-18-1-6-12;  xxxii.  ;  xxxiii.  1-13,  omitting 
vers.  14-26). 

(e)  Discourses  delivered  after  the  capture  of  Jerusalem,  July 
586 ;  (ch.  xxx.  and  xxxi.,  with  some  omissions ;  xlvi.  13-26). 

(/)  Appendix  containing  some  displaced  genuine  passages  of 
Jeremiah,  which  cannot  be  assigned  to  their  proper  place 
(ch.  ii.  14-15 ;  ix.  22-23 ;  ix.  24-25 ;  xii.  4 ;  xvi.  19-20 ; 
xvii.  5-8 ;  xvii.  9-10 ;  xvii.  11-13). 

Part  II,  (comprising  a  collection  of  biographical  chapters  con¬ 
cerning  Jeremiah’s  life).  They  were  evidently  written  after  the 
death  of  the  prophet  (which  took  place  soon  after  586  b.c.)  by  a 
person  who  appears  to  have  been  well  informed). 

Ch.  xix.-xx.  6;  xxvi. ;  xxxvi.  ;  xxvii.-xxviii.  ;  li.  59-64;  xxxiv. 
1-7 ;  xxxvii.  3,  5-10 ;  xxxiv.  8-22 ;  xxxvii.  4,  11-21 ;  xxxviii.  ; 
xxxix.  15-18  (3,  14);  xl.  6-16;  xli.-xliv. 

Part  III.  consisting  of  passages  written  neither  by  Jeremiah, 
nor  by  the  author  of  the  biographical  chapters  (x.  1-16 ;  xvii. 
19-27 ;  xxxix.  l-l2-f-xl.  1-5;  l.-lii.). 

§  3.  Ezekiel. 

Literature. — Commentaries:  by  A.  B.  Davidson  (in  Cam¬ 
bridge  Bible);  H.  A.  Redpath  (in  ‘Westminster’  Series);  [on 
the  criticism  of  the  Hebrew  text,  C.  H.  Toy,  in  S.B.O.  T.].  [The 
following  section  should  be  read  in  coniunction  with  Ottley, 
pp.  63-70.] 

The  Prophet. — Ezekiel^  the  son  of  Buzi^  was  a  priest, 
and  his  writings  may  be  regarded  as  exhibiting  a  singular 
combination  of  the  priestly  with  the  prophetic  spirit. 
He  belonged  to  the  aristocracy  of  Jerusalem,  the  bulk  of 
which  w^as  deported  with  Jehoiachin  in  597  b.c.  into 
Babylonia.  There  with  other  Jewish  exiles  he  was  settled 
at  Tel-abib  (iii.  15)  by  the  river  Chehar  (i.  1,  3 ;  hi.  15, 
etc.).  The  exiles  at  Tel-abib  seem  to  have  formed  a 
little  community.  Ezekiel  lived  in  his  own  Hiouse' 
(iii.  24;  viii.  1,  etc.),  and  other  houses  are  alluded  to 
(xxxiii.  30).  The  elders  of  the  Israelite  community  are 
spoken  of  as  visiting  the  prophet  at  his  home  and  listen¬ 
ing  to  his  words  (viii.  1). 

Ezekiel  received  the  call  to  the  prophetic  office  in  the 
fifth  year  of  Jehoiachin’s  exile  (592  b.c.),  and  the  latest 
date  given  in  the  book  (xxix.  17)  is  some  twenty-two 
years  later  (570  b.c.). 


106 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LITERATURE 


Contents  and  Analysis  of  the  Book. — The  Book  of  Ezekiel 
falls  into  three  clearly  marked  divisions,  marked  by 
difference  of  theme  :  (1)  ch.  i.-xxiv.,  the  imminent  fall 
of  Jerusalem  ;  (2)  ch.  ooxv.-ocococii. ,  prophecies  on  foreign 
nations  ;  and  (3)  ch.  ocxxni.-xlviii. ,  Israel’s  future  resto¬ 
ration. 

(1)  Ch.  i.-xxiv. — The  prophet  from  his  distant  Babylonian  home 
watches  Jerusalem  hastening  to  its  doom.  Though  there  was 
conflict  and  antagonism  between  the  prophet  and  the  other  exiles 
who  shared  his  captivity  (c/.  xii.  21  if.  ;  xiv.  1  ff.  ;  xx.  1  ff.),  yet 
it  was  on  them  that  his  hopes  for  the  future  were  fixed.  Zedekiah 
and  the  populace  left  behind  in  Jerusalem  he  regarded  as  beyond 
redemption  (c/.  ix.  9  f.  ;  xii.  ;  xvii.  1-21 ;  xxi.  25-27  ;  xxii.). 

The  Book  opens  with  an  introductory  section  (i.  1-iii.  15)  in 
which  the  prophetic  call  and  consecration  are  set  forth  in  the 
vision  of  the  cherubim-chariots  of  Jahveh.  [This  introductory 
section  is  termed  by  the  Jews  the  ‘vision  of  the  chariot.’ U 

The  remaining  chapters  of  the  first  part  (iii.  16-xxiv.  27)  com¬ 
prise  a  collection  of  addresses  which  have  as  their  theme  the 
imminent  destruction  of  Jerusalem.  These  chapters  are  of  re¬ 
markable  interest,  especially  in  their  vivid  symbolism  and  the 
allegories  (of  which  the  prophet  is  very  fond). 

(2)  Ch.  xxv.-xxxii. — The  second  part  contains  oracles  against 
seven  foreign  peoples— viz.  Ammon  (xxv.  1-7;  c/.  xxi.  28-32), 
Moab  (xxv.  8-11),  Edom  (xxv.  12-14),  the  Philistines  (xxv.  15-17), 
Tyre  (xpi.  1-xxviii.  19),  Sidon  (xxviii.  20-2G),  and  a  group  of  six 
prophecies  against  Egypt  (xxix.-xxxii.). 

This  section  of  the  Book  presupposes  the  fall  of  Jerusalem. 
The  prophet’s  attitude  towards  the  Weign  nations  is  determined 
by  this  event.  ‘The  fall  of  Jerusalem  wore  the  appearance  of 
a  triunaph  for  heathenism;  Jehovah,  so  it  seemed,  had  been 
unable  in  the  end  to  defend  His  city  ;  the  natives  around  viewed 
Him  with  scorn,  and  His  name  was  profaned  amongst  them.  To 
reassert  the  majesty  and  honour  of  Jahveh  by  declaring  emphati¬ 
cally  that  He  held  in  reserve  a  like  fate  for  Israel’s  neighbours, 
is  the  main  scope  of  [these]  chapters. ’2 

(3)  Ch.  xxxiii.-xlviii.— The  fall  of  Jerusalem,  which  was 
announced  dramatically  by  a  fugitive  to  the  exiles  (xxxiii.  21), 
brilliantly  confirmed  Ezekiel’s  predictions  and  strengthened  his 
position  as  a  prophet  among  the  exiles.  In  the  last  part  of  his 
Book  the  prophet  is  concerned  with  the  future,  and  with  Israel’s 
restoration.  In  ch.  xxxiv.  the  false  shepherds  and  leaders  of 
Israel  are  described,  and,  by  way  of  contrast,  the  advent  of  the 
Messianic  Kingdom.  Jahveh  Himself  will  restore  them  (for  the 


^  The  ‘chariot’  passage  was  regarded  by  the  Rabbis  as  a 
synopsis  of  theosophy  (so  also  Gen.  i.  of  the  cosmogony).  The 
study  of  Ezek.  i.  and  Gen.  i.  was,  therefore,  forbidden  to  those 
under  thirty  years  old.  2  Driver,  L.O.T.,  p.  268  f. 


THE  WRITING  PROPHETS 


107 


figure  c/  Jer.  xxiii.  1-4).  In  cli.  xxxv.  a  prophecy  is  uttered 
against  Edom  which  had  encroached  on  Israel’s  territory:  but 
Judah,  which  is  now  a  reproach,  shall  be  repeopled  and  re-estab- 
lished  (ch.  xxxvi.)  In  ch.  xxxvii.  the  restoration  is  depicted 
under  the  striking  figure  of  the  vision  of  the  valley  of  dry  bones. 

of  tlie^ture^^^^  Judah,  is  destined  to  share  in  the  blessings 

Ch.  xxxviii.-xxxix.  (Gog  and  Magog)  are  eschatological  in  char¬ 
acter,  and  depict  Jahveh’s  final  triumph  over  the  hostile  world- 

powers,  pictured  as  an  attack  of  the  hosts  from  the  north  on  the 
restored  nation. 

Ch.  xl.-xlviii.  contain  the  famous  vision  of  the  restored  temple 
and  theocracy.  Minute  details  are  given  of  the  imaginary  build- 
ing,  and  the  organisation  of  the  restored  community. 

Character  of  the  Book  as  a  whole.— The  Book  is  per¬ 
vaded  by  an  individuality  which  is  unmistakable.  No 
substantial  objections  can  be  ur^ed  against  its  integrity 
or  authorship.  'I  he  prophecies  are,  in  many  cases,  dated 
with  precision,  and  the  whole  Book  may  be  looked  upon, 
as^it  stands,  as  (apart  from  minor  redactional  adjustments 
which  are  quite  unimportant)  the  work  of  the  prophet, 
whose  name  it  bears.  It  has  undergone  no  long  literary 
expansion  and  development,  in  which  many  hands  have 
pai  ticipated ,  as  is  the  case  with  such  writings  as  the  Books 
of  Isaiah  and  Jeremiah.  In  this  respect  the  Book  of 
Ezekiel  occupies  a  privileged  position  in  the  prophetic 
literature  of  the  Old  Testament. 

The  text  of  the  Book  is,  unfortunately,  in  a  bad  state  of  pre¬ 
servation.  Ezekiels  style  has  many  points  of  affinitv  with  the 
priestly  phraseology  (especially  with  the  Holiness  Code).  The 
essential  spirit  of  P  comes  to  expression  in  such  passages  as 
XXXVII*  i,j  xliii*  7}  9* 

§  4.  The  Minor  Prophets  (Book  of  the  Twelve 

Prophets). 

UteratuTe.-Comm^ni^xiQ^  by  Pusey,  G.  A.  Smith,  The  Book 
of  the  Twelve  Prophets  {2  vols.  Exp.  Bible)',  Minor  Prophets 
in  CeMury  Bible,  vol.  ii.,  by  S.  B.  Driver  (on  Nahum,  Habak- 
kiik,  Zephaniah,  Haggai,  Zechariah,  Malachi). 

On  Hosea :  T.  K.  Cheyne  (Camb.  Bible). 

Hosea  and  Amos,  by  Harper  (in  Internal.  Crit.  Commentaries). 
^el  and  Amos,  by  S.  R.  Driver  (in  Camb.  Bible). 

Micah,  by  T.  K.  Cheyne  (in  Camb.  Bible). 

Zephaniah,  by  A.  B.  Davidson  (in 

Haggai  and  Zechariah,  by  T.  T.  Perowne  (in  Camb.  Bible). 

Cf.  Zechariah  and  his  Prophecies,  by  C.  H.  H.  Wright 
(Bampton  Lectures,  1879).  ° 


108 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LITERATURE 


Malachi,  by  T.  T.  Perowne  (in  Camb.  Bible). 

Cf.  also  the  articles  in  Encycl.  Brit.  (ed.  9) :  Robertson  Smith, 
The  Prophets  of  Israel ;  F.  W.  Farrar,  The  Minor  Prophets, 
their  Lives  and  Times  :  articles  in  the  Bible  Dictionaries. 

(i)  Hosea  {cf.  OttleV;,  H.P.,  pp.  24-80). 

Hosea  was  the  son  of  a  certain  Beeri,  to  whose  author¬ 
ship  Jewish  tradition  assigns  Isa.  viii.  19-20.  Hosea  was 
a  native  of  the  Northern  Kingdom^  and  was  active  in 
the  reign  of  Jeroboam  ii.  {cf.  i.  1) — probably  in  the  latter 
})art  of  it — and  subsequently.  From  his  Book  we  gather 
that  he  had  been  compelled  to  endure  heavy  domestic 
sorrow  (ch.  i.-iii.),  and  that  he  lived  in  very  disturbed 
and  troublous  times  {cf.  ix.  7-8). 


Chronological  Table. 


H.C. 

786.  Jeroboam  ii. 
746.  Zechariah. 
7AK  I  Shallum. 

"  \Menahem. 


B.O. 

737.  Pekahiah, 

735.  Pekah. 

733.  Hoshea. 

722.  Fall  of  Samaria. 


[Jeroboam  ii.  was  the  fourth  ruler  of  the  dynasty  founded  by 
Jehu.  Plis  reign  was  long  and  successful.  But  the  House  of 
Jehu  had  not  fulfilled  the  expectations  of  the  prophets.  Hence 
Hosea’s  prediction  of  judgment  upon  it  (i.  4  L).  With  Jeroboam’s 
successor  (Zechariah)  the  dynasty  of  Jehu  came  to  an  end  (he  was 
murdered  after  a  reign  of  six  months).  A  period  of  anarchy 
followed,  of  which  a  picture  is  given  by  Hosea  in  vii.  3-7, 
viii.  4.] 


Contents  and  Analysis  of  the  Book. — The  Book  falls  into 
two  parts  :  {a)  ch.  i.-iii.,  and  {b)  ch.  iv.-xiv. 

(а)  Ch.  i.-iii. — The  prophet  out  of  his  own  domestic  misfortunes 
weaves  a  sort  of  allegory  of  Israel’s  unfaithfulness  to  Jahveh  and 
its  consequences.  But  the  rejection  is  not  final.  The  time  here 
presupposed  is  the  prosperous  period  of  Jeroboam  ii. 

(б)  Ch.  iv.-xiv.  comprise  a  series  of  addresses,  which  give  a 
summary  of  Hosea’s  prophetic  teaching.  This  part  of  the  Book 
obviously  emanates  from  a  later  period  than  (a).  Anarchy  and 
murdered  kings  are  alluded  to  (vii.  3-7,  16  ;  x.  15).  Israel  is 
seeking  help  from  Assyria  and  Egypt  (cf.  v.  13 ;  vii.  11 ;  viii.  9 ; 
xii.  2).  But  there  is  no  allusion  to  the  Syro-Ephraimitish  war 
of  735-4.  Thus  (a)  belongs  to  c.  746  b.c.,  (b)  to  c.  735. 

Ch.  iv.-a^iv.  may  be  divided  into  three  sections  :  (1)  iv.- 
viii.,  where  Israel’s  guilt  is  emphasised  :  ix.-xi.  11,  Israel’s 
punishment  emphasised  ;  xi.  12-xiv.,  both  lines  of  thought 


THE  VV^RITING  PROPHETS 


109 


are  continued,  but  in  the  conclusion  (xiv.)  a  brighter 
future  is  pictured  for  Israel  if  the  nation  repents. 

General  Character  of  the  Book. — ^The  Book  of  Hosea  is 
individual  and  subjective  in  character  to  a  degree  that 
is  hardly  paralleled  in  the  case  of  any  other  prophetic 
writing  (Cornill).  It  reflects  an  intensely  emotional 
temperament,  which  makes  itself  felt  in  the  short,  abrupt 
sentences  that  mark  the  prophet’s  style. 

The  Book  has  been  subjected  to  Judaistic  influence,  and  it  is 
possible  that  there  are  some  Judaistic  interpolations  (e.g.  '‘and 
David  their  King’'  in  iii.  5 ;  c/.  Jer.  xxx.  9). 

(ii)  Joel  {cf.  Ottley,  U.P.,  pp.  95-97). 

In  the  title  of  the  Book  no  particulars  are  given  as  to 
date  ;  only  the  prophet’s  name  is  mentioned  {Joel  son  of 
Pethuel). 

Jhe  theme  of  the  Book  is  a  simple  one.  It  dwells 
upon  the  approach  of  the  Day  of  Jahveh,’  the  pre¬ 
cursor  of  which  the  author  sees  in  a  terrible  plague  of 
locusts  which,  accompanied  by  drought,  is  causing  the 
severest  distress. 

The  prophecy  falls  into  two  parts,  viz.  (a)  i.  2-17  and  (6)  ii.  18 
to  end.  In  (a)  the  occasion  of  the  prophecy  (a  visitation  of 
locusts)  is  vividly  described  (i.  2-7) ;  the  prophet  proceeds  to  ex¬ 
hort  the  people  to  fasting,  supplication,  and  mourning,  for  the 
present  visitation  suggests  the  approach  of  the  ‘Day  of  Jahveh’ 
(i.  15),  which  is  to  be  ushered  in  by  a  visitation  even  more  terrible 
(ii.  2T1).  In  {h)  ch.  ii.  18  to  end  the  result  of  the  prophet’s 
warning  is  set  forth  in  narrative  form :  the  people,  apparently, 
repented,  Jahveh  graciously  changed  His  purpose  and  re¬ 
sponded  to  the  people’s  prayer.  The  language  here  is  largelv 
eschatological. 

Date  of  the  Prophecy.— On  the  question  of  date  there 
has  been  a  large  amount  of  discussion  among  the  inter¬ 
preters  of  the  Book.  A  number  of  indications,  however, 
converge  to  show  that  the  composition  of  the  Book  must 
be  post-exilic. 

Such  allusions  as  those  contained  in  iii.  1-3  and  17  (  =  iv.  1-3  17 
in  Hebrew)  presupposes  the  dispersion  of  the  Jews  among  nations. 
The  reference  to  captive  Jews  being  sold  to  Greeks  in  iii.  6  also 
implies  a  post-exilic  date.  The  Temple  is  in  existence,  and  a 
solemn  assembly  of  the  people  (a  ‘  fast  ’)  can  take  place  there.  It 
is  probable  that  the  community  of  the  Second  Temple  is  addressed ; 
and  the  mention  of  Jerusalem’s  walls  (ii.  9)  indicates  a  time  sub- 


110  OLD  TESTAMENT  LITERATURE 

sequent  to  the  age  of  Nehemiali  (perhaps  between  c.  400  n.c.  and 
350  B.c.). 

[The  diction  and  style  of  J oel  are  smooth  and  flowing  \  ‘  but  it 
is  the  flowing  diction  of  the  scholar  who  is  deeply  read  in  the 
ancient  literature,  not  the  spontaneous  beauty  which  marks  the 
creations  of  genius.’ 

(iii)  Amos  (c/.  Ottley,  i7.P.,  pp.  17-24). 

Amos,  as  he  himself  informs  us,  was  a  shepherd  living 
in  the  Judean  town  of  Tekoa.  From  following  the  flock 
he  was  taken  by  Jahveh  in  order  to  prophesy  against 
JahvelTs  peojAe  Israel,  i.e.  the  Northern  Kingdom.  His 
message  was  to  announce  its  overthrow,  and  the  exile  of 
its  inhabitants  by  the  Assyrians.  With  such  an  announce¬ 
ment  as  the  burden  of  his  message  it  is  not  surprising 
that  the  prophet  should  have  been  expelled  from  the 
royal  sanctuary  at  Bethel.  The  prophet  appears  himself 
to  have  committed  his  prophecies  to  writing,  and  may, 
therefore,  be  styled  rightly  the  ^  first  of  the  writing 
prophets.’ 

Contents  and  Analysis  of  the  Book.— The  book  falls 
naturally  into  three  parts:  {a)  ch.  i.-ii.,  introductory; 
(6)  ch.  iii.-vi. ;  and  (c)  ch.  vii.-ix. 

(а)  Ch.  4. -M.— After  a  flue  exordium  (i,  2)  the  prophet  rapidly 
surveys  the  nations  bordering  on  Israel,  and  shows  that  in  each 
case  retribution  will  follow  the  violation  of  some  moral  law; 
Israel,  too,  is  not  destined  to  escaj^e  ;  its  doom  is  approachino' 
(ii.  13-16).  The  enumeration  of  the  nations  skilfully  leads  up  to 
a  climax — in  Israel. 

(б)  Ch.  iii.-vi.,  a  group  of  three  discourses,  each  introduced  by 
the  emphatic  address  :  Hear  ye  this  %cord  (iii.  1;  iv.  1 ;  v.  1). 
Here  the  indictment  of  Israel  is  worked  out  and  iustified  in 
detail. 

(c)  Ch.  vii.-ix.  contains  a  series  of  visions,  with  a  historical 
passage  interjected  (vii.  10-17)  and  an  epilogue  (ix.  7-15).  The 
visions  point  the  moral  of  the  previous  chapters. 

It  will  he  apparent  from  the  analysis  that  the  Book  as 
a  whole  is  skilfully  arranged  and  marked  by  unity  of 
plan  and  consistency  of  thought.  In  command  of 
language  and  literary  power  the  earliest  is  also  one 
of  the  greatest  of  the  writing  prophets. 

The  only  passages  as  to  whose  authenticity  serious  doubts  can 
be  urged  are  ii.  4-8  (a  Deuteronomic  interpolation  ?),  iv.  13,  v.  8-9, 


^  Blerx. 


THE  WRITING  PROPHETS 


111 


which  seem  to  disturb  the  connection,  and  not 
■to  fat  their  context  (Wellhausen  would  add  i.  9-10, 11-12*  iv  l2/j  • 
and  viii.  11-12),  ,  .  ^ , 

The  conclusion  of  the  Book,  ix.  8-15,  is  usually  treated  by 
critical  scholars  as  a  post-exilic  addition,  appended  in  order  to 
give  the  Book  a  hopeful  ending.  It  is,  however,  possible  that  some 
ot  the  alleged  interpolations  in  the  prophetic  literature— especially 
passages  which  exhibit  eschatological  features— may  be  okler  than 
the  prophets  in  whose  writings  they  occur,  and  may  be  cited  bv 
them  as  they  were  current  and  familiar  in  popular  tradition. 


Date  of  Amos. — According:  to  the  superscription  in  i.  1 
Amos  prophesied  in  the  reigns  of  Uzziah  of  Judah,  and 
Jeroboam  (ii.)  of  Israel ;  and  everything  in  the  Book 
confirms  this.  The  picture  there  given  suggests  a  state 
ot  affairs  in  which  external  prosperity  is  combined 
with  internal  weakness  (the  result  of  the  corrupting- 
influence  of  luxury  and  great  wealth).  Amos  was  pro¬ 
bably  active  between  7(i0  and  750  b.c.  He  must  be 
regarded  as  an  elder  contemporary  of  Hosea,  who  shows 
signs  of  being  acquainted  with  the  prophecies  of  Amos.  ^ 

(iv)  Obadiah  (cf.  Ottley,  H.P.,  pp.  61,  97-98). 

The  little  prophecy  which  bears  the  name  oi  Obadiah  is 
concerned  mainly  with  Edom,  upon  whom  a  fearful  judg¬ 
ment  is  announced  to  be  impending  (vers.  1-9);  the  ground 
of  this  is  Edom’s  baseness  and  treachery  towards  Judah  in 
the  hour  of  her  calamity,  when  the  city  was  captured  by 
enemies  (vers.  10-14) ;  the  day  of  retribution  that  awaits 
them  IS  coming  with  the  advent  of  ^a  Day  of  Jahveh’ 
upon  all  nations :  then  Edom  shall  give  place  to  a 
reunited  and  restored  Judah  and  Israel  (vers.  15-21) 

Date  of  the  Prophecy.— It  is  obvious  that  vers.  11-14 
refer  to  the  capture  of  Jerusalem  by  Nebuchadnezzar  in 
586  B.c.  1  his  will  furnish  the  terminus  a  quo.  But  the 
matter  is  complicated  by  the  relation  of  Obadiah  to 
Jer.  xlix.  7-22. 


In  Jer.  xlix.  a  considerable  number  of  points  of  contact  with 
Obadiah  occur  :  Obad.  1  =  Jer.  xlix.  14  ;  ver.  2= xlix  15  •  vpr 
xlix.  16a;  ver.  4=xlix.  166;  ver.  5=xlix.  9;  ver.  'e^iS  10a  - 
vers.  8=xlix.  7 ver.  9a=xlix.  226.  '  ’ 


A  comparison  of  these  parallels  tells  in  favour  of  the 
superior  originality  of  Obadiah.  But  Obadiah  cannot  be 


1  Cf.  Hos.  iv.  15 ;  V.  8 ;  X.  5,  with  Amos  v.  5, 


112 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LITERATURE 


earlier  than  586  b.c,,  and  Jer.  xlix.  7  f.  was  delivered  in 
the  fourth  year  of  Jehoiakim  (604  b.c.).  The  only  satis¬ 
factory  solution  of  this  enig'ma  is  to  suppose  that  Jer. 
xlix.  7-22  is  not  in  its  original  form,  but  that  the  original 
form  of  it  has  been  revised  in  accordance  with  Obadiah. 
Giesebrecht  has  shown  in  detail  that  this  is  probable. 
According  to  Wellhausen  the  original  form  of  Obadiah 
consists  of  vers.  1-5,  ,  10-11, 13-14, 155.  This  originally 
referred  to  the  displacement  of  Edomites  by  Arab  tribes 
in  the  fifth  century  b.c.  The  prophecy  was  later  revised 
(partly  under  the  influence  of  Jer.  xlix.)  with  the  object 
of  expanding  the  contemporary  catastrophe  of  Edom 
eschatologically  into  a  judgment  over  the  heathen  world 
and  the  restoration  of  Israel. 

(v)  Jonah  {cf.  Ottley,  II.  P.,  pp.  99-103). 

The  Book  of  Jonah,  both  in  form  and  substance,  is 
utterly  unlike  any  other  of  the  prophetic  writings.  It  is 
cast  entirely  (apart  from  the  psalm  ’  in  ch.  ii.)  in  the  form 
of  historical  narrative,  which,  however,  is  pervaded  by 
a  very  pronounced  didactic  aim  and  edifying  purpose. 

The  hero  of  the  Book  is  Jonah  ben  Amittai  of  Gath-hepher  in 
Galilee,  who  is  referred  to  in  II.  Kings  xiv.  25  as  having  predicted 
to  Jeroboam  ii.  his  successes  against  the  Syrians. 

Character  of  the  Narrative. — The  story  told  in  the  Book 
presupposes  a  time  when  the  Assyrian  Empire  was  at  the 
height  of  its  power  and  Nineveh  was,  in  a  sense,  the 
metropolis  of  the  world.  The  Jonah  referred  to  must, 
therefore,  be  the  historical  Jonah  of  II.  Kings  xiv.  25. 
But  the  linguistic  features  of  the  Book  make  an  early 
(pre-exilic)  date  for  its  composition  quite  impossible. 
The  narrative  is  a  late  one  (post-exilic)  which  recounts  an 
episode  in  which  the  historical  Jonah  is  the  principal 
figure.  It  resembles  in  general  character  the  biograph¬ 
ical  narratives  of  Elijah  and  Elisha  in  Kings,  though  it 
is  pervaded  by  a  more  distinctly  didactic  aim’  (Driver). 

There  may  be  a  historical  basis  for  the  narrative — very  probably 
the  preaching  of  Jonah  in  Nineveh  was  a  fact  vouched  for  by  old 
tradition — but  the  incidents  appear  to  have  been  made  subservient 
to  the  very  pronounced  didactic  aim  of  the  Book.  According  to 
Budde,  the  Book  of  Jonah  has  been  extracted  from  the  Midrash, 
from  which  the  Chronicler  cited.  The  book  has  a  decidedly 
I^Iidrashic  character. 


THE  WRITING  PROPHETS  113 

Aim  of  the  Book.— The  Rook  appears  to  have  been 

written  as  a  protest  ag-ainst  the  exclusive  spirit  which 

nioie  and  more  dominated  official  Judaism  after  the  time 

ot  Ezia.  Jonah  is  the  type  of  his  unspiritual  fellow- 

countrymen  who  were  disappointed  because  the  heathen 

Thp  exterminated  by  Jahveh.  The  desson  of 

Tnfl  merely  the 

God  of  the  Jewish  nation,  hut  of  all  creation,  extends 

thP  rTl  h  ^  ^  creatures  ;  that  He  is  concerned  with 
the  well-being  of  the  heathen  world;  and  that  the 
heathen  are  ready  to  respond  to  the  prophetic  message 
alout  the  true  God,  which  it  is  Israel’s  duty  to  proclaim 
to  the  whole  world.  ^ 

tolTpY  allegorical  view  of  the  Book,  according 

iL  not  merely  unspiritual  Israelites  but 

nation  as  a  whole.  Israel  had  been  entrusted  by 
Sue  Cod'  b^n  commission  to  bear  witness  to  the  revelation  of  the 
pImrS  ^  respond  to  the  demands  of  this  high 

calling  ,  had  repeatedly  apostatised,  and,  in  consequence  wls 
swallowed  up  by  the  world-power  Babylon  (c/.  Jer.  li.  34).  ’  The 
chastisement  of  exile  produced  repentance  and  the  nation  was 

released;  but  even  then  many  in 
Israel  were  disappointed  because  the  predictions  regardina:  the 
01  erthrow  of  the  heathen  nations  were  not  realised  lust  as  T^nah 
«s  ^appointed  at  the  reversal  of  the  doom  prl'ounced  up» 

Date  and  Integrity  of  the  Book. -The  composition  of 
the  Book  cannot  well  he  assigned  to  an  earlier  date  than 
t^lie  end  of  the  Persian  period  (c.  850)  ;  it  may  even 
belong  to  the  Greek  period.  It  was  already  recognised  as 
one  of  the  twelve  prophets  ’  by  the  time  of  Ben  Sira,  i.e. 
c.  200  B.c.  (Ecclus.  xhx.  10).  In  its  broad  universalism  it 
IS  unsurpassed  in  the  whole  range  of  Biblical  literature. 

The  Psalm  in  ch  ii.  3-10  is  probably  a  later  interpolation  •  it 
IS  inappiojiriate  in  its  present  place  (being  really  a  thanksqivina) 
and  is  largely  made  up  of  quotations  from  the  Psalter.  ^  ^  ’ 

(viii)  Micah  {cf.  Ottley,  J/.P.,  pp.  88-43). 

(])  The  Prophet.— JJicah  was  a  younger  contemporary 
of  Isaiah,  and  is  styled  the  Morashtite,  i.e.  a  native  of 
Mores heth,  a  small  town  dependent  on  Gath  in  thp 
maritime  plain  (c/i  ch.  i.  1  and  H).  According  to 
^  he  prophesied  in  the  days  of  HeJdah, 
kwg  0/  /h*iA  predicting  that  Zion  ehou/d  be  plowed  as  a 
field,  etc.  ( =  Micah,  iii.  12).  His  prophetic  activity  may, 

H 


114 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LITERATURE 


therefore^  probably  be  placed  somewhere  between  the 
)''ears  720-700  b.c. 

The  words  in  the  days  of  Jotham,  Ahaz,  in  the  superscription 
(i.  1)  are  probably  redactional  additions. 

(2)  Contents  and  Analysis  of  the  Book  of  Micah. — The 
Book  falls  naturally  into  three  parts,  viz.  :  (a)  ch.  i.-iii., 
(6)  ch.  iv.-v.,  and  (c)  ch.  vi.-vii. 

{a)  Ch.  i.-iii. — This  section  mainly  consists  of  denunciation.  It 
opens  with  a  vivid  description  of  Jahveh’s  imminent  appearance 
for  judgment  on  account  of  the  transgression  of  Samaria  and 
Jerusalem,  which  represent  the  northern  and  southern  kingdoms. 
Samaria  is  therefore  to  be  reduced  to  ruin  (i.  2-7) ;  the  prophet, 
however,  sees  with  grief  that  disaster  is  advancing  upon  Jerusalem 
as  well.  In  a  remarkable  passage  full  of  paronomasia  he 
describes  the  fate  of  towns  near  his  own  home  (i.  8-16) ;  ch.  ii. 
describes  the  national  sin  and  its  punishment :  soon  the  heathen 
shall  be  seen  dividing  up  the  land  (vers.  1-5).  A  sarcastic  inter¬ 
ruption  (ver.  6)  is  met  by  an  earnest  reply  on  the  part'  of  the 
prophet  (vers.  7,  11).  In  vers.  12-13  there  is  an  abrupt  transition. 
The  restoration  of  Israel — the  people  headed  by  their  king  with 
Jahveh  at  his  side — is  strikingly  depicted.  [The  text  of  ch.  ii.  is 
apparently  in  disorder  and  mutilated.  The  true  sequence  may 
be :  vers.  1,  2,  8-10,  3,  4,  6,  7,  11,  12-13  (ver.  5  is  probably  a 
gloss).  The  last  two  verses  (12-13)  are  regarded  by  many  scholars 
as  a  later  interpolation.  Their  connection  with  the  context  is 
not  clear,  and  they  seem  to  presuppose  the  Exile.]  Ch.  iii.  is 
parallel  in  thought  (and  partly  in  structure)  with  ch.  ii.  It  falls 
into  three  parts  :  i.  vers.  1-4,  against  the  ruling  classes ;  ii.  vers. 
5-8,  a  digression  against  the  false  prophets;  iii.  vers.  6-l2,  a 
recapitulation  of  the  nation’s  sins  and  doom. 

(6)  Ch.  iv.-v. — This  section  opens  with  an  eschatological  passage 
describing  the  future  glory  of  Zion  as  the  spiritual  metropolis  of 
the  world  (vers.  l-5=Isa.  ii.  2-4  substantially):  Israel’s  restoration 
is  again  predicted  (vers.  6-7),  as  well  as  the  revival  of  the  Davidic 
sovereignty  (ver.  8) ;  in  the  remaining  verses  present  distress,  the 
period  of  travail  and  aflliction  which  must  precede  Zion’s  final 
triumph  over  the  assembled  nations,  are  dwelt  upon  (vers.  9-13). 
Ch.  v.  again  is  largely  Messianic  and  eschatological.  The  period 
of  stress  alluded  to  in  verse  1  passes  over  into  a  description  of  the 
Messiah’s  birth  and  world-wide  rule  (vers.  2-4) ;  he  will  be  the 
Deliverer  of  his  people  against  the  Assyrians  (vers.  5-6),  and  ‘  the 
remnant  of  Jacob’  shall  prove  its  terrible  might  among  the 
nations  (vers.  7-9) ;  the  great  mark  of  the  Messianic  age  will  be 
the  destruction  of  warlike  instruments  and  idolatry  (vers.  10-15). 

(c)  Ch.  vi.-vii. :  (i.)  vi.  1-vii.  6. — This  section  is  different  in 
tone  and  character  from  ch.  i.-iii.  and  iv.-v.  The  whole  people 
— not  merely  its  leaders — is  denounced ;  and  the  representation 
takes  a  dramatic  form,  that  of  a  controversial  dialogue  between 
Jahveh  and  Israel.  Jahveh  first  arraigns  the  people  (vi.  1-5) ;  in 


THE  WRITING  PROPHETS 


115 


^  V^o-ple  personified  and  the  prophet 

speak  ;  a  further  denunciation  bj  Jahveh  (vers.  9-16)  follows  and 
again  the  penitent  community  and  the  prophet  speak  in  vii  1-6 
(ii)  vzi.  7-20.— Here  -  — 


_  ■  ^  again  the  standpoint  changes.  The 

penitent  community  in  distress  speaks  in  vers.  7-10,  the  prophet 
replying  with  a  consolatory  promise  (vers.  11-13),  which  is  followed 

prophet  in  the  people’s  name,  that  the 
piomised  salvation  may  be  realised. 


(3)  Composite  Character  of  the  Book.— The  fraa-mentarv 
cliaracter  of  much  of  the  Book  is  apparent  on  close  exami¬ 
nation.  1  he  transitions  are  abrupt,  and  the  standpoint 
constantly  changes.  Eschatological  features  are  also  very 
maiked.  The  last  part  of  the  third  section  (vii.  7-20)  is 
regarded  by  Wellhausen  as  an  exilic  addition,  but  may 
well  be  original.  Ch.  vi.  1-vii.  G  was  assigned  by  Ewald 
to  an  anonymous  prophet  in  the  reign  of  Manasseh.  TTiis 
IS  probable,  and  is  not  inconsistent  with  Micah’s 
authorship.^  It  has  been  questioned  whether  the  whole  of 
ly.-v.,  particularly  the  Babylon  clause  ni  iv.  10,  is  con¬ 
sistent  with  the  context. 


Cornill  supposes  that  vi.  1-vii.  6,  with  a  conclusion  now  lost 
were  added  to  an  earlier  form  of  i.-iii. ;  that  this  whole  was  then 
mterpolated  by  another  hand  which  added  iv.  1-4,  11-14  v.  1-3 
0-14 ;  finally  a  later  hand  revised  this  whole,  adding  vii.  7-20  (in 
place  of  the  original  conclusion)  and  interpolating  ii.  12-13  iv 
0-10,  and  v.  4-5.  ’ 


(vii)  Nahum  (cf.  Ottley,  B.P.,  pp.  4G-48). 

^  (1)  The  Prophet.— All  that  is  known  of  Nahum  (  =  ^  rich 
m  comfort  [is  God]’)  is  contained  in  the  statement  (i.  1) 

lat  he  was  an  Elkoshite.  But  the  locality  so  designated 
IS  unknown.  ^ 

According  to  Jerome  it  is  to  be  identified  with  a  village  in 
Galilee  which  in  his  time  bore  the  name  Elkesi  (fourth  century 
A.D.j.  Eut  the  site  of  this  village  is  uncertain. 

(2)  Contents  and  Analysis  of  the  Book.— The  main 
contents^  of  the  Book  are  correctly  described  in  the 
superscription,  Oracle  concerning  Nineveh,  which,  however 
IS  a  late  editorial  insertion.  The  original  heading-  is 
contained  in  the  second  part :  ^[The  book  of]  the  vision 
of  Nahum  the  Elkoshite' 

The  prophecy  against  Nineveh  really  begins  with  ii  1 
followed  immediately  by  ver.  3  f.  :  it  falls  into  three 
parts  ;  (a)  ii.  1,  3-10,  (5)  ii.  11-13  and  (c)  iii 


116 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LITERATURE 


Here  [a)  describes  in  vivid  language  the  assault  on  Nineveh, 
and  its  capture  ;  {h)  contains  an  oracle  directed  against  the  King 
of  Assyria  ;  and  (c)  contains  a  fierce  denunciation  of  the  sins  and 
doom  of  the  ‘bloody  city.’  The  calamities  which  have  already 
overtaken  No-Amon  {i.e.  Egyptian  Thebes)  shall  fall  upon  it. 

Ch.  1  (  +  ii.  2)  forms  the  exordium  to  the  oracle  on 
Nineveh  in  tlie  present  form  of  the  Book.  -A  fine  picture 
is  g-iven  of  Jahveh  appearing  in  judgment^  and  the 
effects  of  this  on  the  physical  universe  (vers.  2-6) ;  He 
cares  for  those  who  trust  in  Him  (ver.  7)  hut  over¬ 
whelms  His  enemies  (vers.  8-12rt)  ;  vers.  126-15  describe 
how  the  joyful  news  is  conveyed  to  Judah. 

It  was  long  ago  noticed  that  ch.  i,  and  ii.  2  exhibit  traces  of  an 
alphabetic  acrostic,  and  throughout  there  is  no  reference  to 
Nineveh.  The  text  of  i.  1-15  and  ii.  2  has  been  reconstructed  by 
Gunkel  and  Bickell  so  as  to  form  a  complete  alphabetic  psalm, 
with  contents  of  an  eschatological  character.  Ch.  i.  and  ii.  2  as 
a  whole  can  hardly  belong  to  Nahum  originally.  Possibly  i.  9-12 
may  proceed  from  the  proj)het. 

Date  of  Nahum’s  Oracle. — The  composition  of  the 
prophecy  must  fall  hetween  607-6^  when  Nineveh  was 
destroyed  hy  the  Babylonians  and  Medes_,  and  the 
capture  of  Thebes  (No-Amon)  alluded  to  in  iii.  8-10. 
This  took  place  for  the  second  time  and  most  completely 
in  663  or  662  b.c.  (by  Assurbanipal).  As  the  tone  of  the 
prophecy  suggests  that  the  fall  of  Nineveh  is  imminent,,  a 
date  somewhat  nearer  606  is  probable. 

(viii)  Habakkuk  {ef.  Ottley,  H.P.,  pp.  49-51). 

Of  the  prophet  Habakkuk  nothing  is  known  but  what 
can  be  inferred  from  the  Book. 

Contents  and  Analysis. — The  prophecy  is  thrown  dra¬ 
matically  into  the  form  of  a  dialogue  between  the  prophet 
and  Jahveh  {cf.  Micah  vi.-vii.  ;  Jer.  xiv.-xv.  ).  It  falls 
into  three  parts  :  (a)  ch.  i.,  (6)  ch.  ii.^  and  (c)  ch.  iii. 

{a)  Ch.  i. — The  prophet  complains  of  the  wickedness  which 
goes  on  unchecked  in  the  land  (vers.  2-4) ;  Jahveh  answers  that 
the  instrument  of  judgment— the  Chaldeans— is  near  at  hand 
(vers.  5-11);  the  prophet  now  raises  another  problem — are  the 
righteous  to  perish  with  the  guilty  in  a  common  destruction  at 
the  hands  of  a  brutal  and  barbarous  power  ?  (vers.  12-17). 

{h)  Ch.  ii.  begins  by  depicting  the  prophet  on  the  watch-tower 
awaiting  an  answer  to  his  appeal  and  complaints  (ver.  1).  The 
answer  is  given  in  ver.  4  :  The  oppressor  {the  Chaldean  t)  is  elated 
with  pride ;  hut  the  just  hy  his  faithfulness  shall  he  preserved 


THE  WRITING  PROPHETS 


317 


alive.  ^  The  oppressor’s  pride  will  prove  his  downfall.  This 
theme  is  developed  in  a  ‘  taunt-song,’  placed  in  the  mouth  of  the 
nations,  on  the  day  of  the  tyrant’s  downfall  (vers.  6-20). 

(c)  Ch.  Hi.  is  a  lyric  ode  ‘which  for  sublimity  of  poetic 
conception  and  splendour  of  diction,  ranks  with  the  finest  (Ex.  xv.  ; 
Judg.  y, )  which  Hebrew  poetry  has  produced’  (Driver).  The 
theme  is  Jahveh  appearing  in  judgment  against  His  foes. 

The  Aim  and  Date  of  the  Prophecy. — It  has  usually  been 
assumed  that  the  oppressive  pow'er  denounced  is  the 
Chaldean_,  and  the  date  assigned  has  been  c.  605  (just 
before  the  decisive  victory  of  the  Chaldeans  over  the 
Egyptians  at  Carchemish,  in  604  b.c.).  But  this  interpre¬ 
tation  has  recently  been  controverted. 

Giesebrecht  maintains  that  the  descriptive  passage  which 
contains  the  only  mention  of  the  Chaldeans  in  the  Book  (i.  5-11) 
is  misplaced,  interrupting  the  close  connection  between  vers.  12 
and  4  of  ch.  i.  ^  The  Chaldeans  are  to  be  regarded  as  not  the 
objects  but  the  instruments  of  Jahveh’s  wrath,  The  oppressor’ 
who  is  deirouirced  must,  therefore,  be  Assyria,  and  the  occasion 
the  threatening  of  Nineveh  by  the  Chaldeans.  Perhaps  i.  5-11 
should  be  made  to  follow  ii.  4,  where  there  is  a  gap,  apparently, 
in  the  text.  Cornill  would,  on  this  view,  date  the  oracle  c.  615 
[the  ‘bloody  city’  of  iii.  1.  would,  of  course,  be  Nineveh]. 

Ch.  iii.  has  a  character  of  its  own.  It  is  decidedly  apocalvjrtic 
and  eschatological  in  colouring.  It  may  have  been  derived  from 
a  collection  of  psalms,  where  it  stood  with  its  present  super¬ 
scription  (‘Prayer  of  Habakkuk  the  prophet’).  It  is  probably 
post-exilic  (notice  the  musical  subscription). 

(ix)  Zephaniah  {cf.  Ottley,  H.P.,  pp.  48-49). 

(1)  The  Prophet. — The  superscription  of  the  Book  in¬ 
forms  us  that  Zephaniah  was  the  descendant^  in  the 
fourth  generation,  of  a  certain  Hezekiah.  The  latter  is 
not  a  very  common  name,  and  is  generally  assumed  to  be 
that  of  the  famous  king ;  but  this  identification  is  by  no 
means  absolutely  certain.  W e  also  learn  from  the 
superscription  that  the  prophet  w’as  active  in  the  days  of 
Josiah  the  son  of  Amoii,  king  of  Judah.  As  the  prophecy 
presupposes  that  idolatry  is  rampant  in  some  of  its 
grosser  forms,  the  date  of  its  composition  will  have 
preceded  the  Deuteronomic  Reformation,  and  may  be 
fixed  as  c.  630. 

(2)  Contents  and  Analysis  of  the  Book. — The  prophecy 

falls  into  three  parts:  (a)  ch.  i.,  (b)  ch.  ii.-iii.  7,  and  (c) 
ch.  iii.  8-20.  ’  \  / 


118 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LITERATURE 


(а)  Ch.  i.  contains  a  wonderful  description  of  ‘the  Day  of 
Jahveh  ’  on  which  the  famous  Dies  irae  dies  ilia  (i.  15  Vulgate) 
is  based.  The  judgment  is  pictured  as  a  world-catastrophe 
(ver.  2  f. ),  but  is  directed  more  particularly  against  the  idolaters 
and  apostates  in  Jerusalem.  Three  classes  are  specially  mentioned 
as  destined  to  be  victims  in  the  sacrifice,  viz.  the  paganising 
dependents  of  the  Court,  the  merchants,  and  the  irreligious 
Judaeans. 

(б)  Ch.  ii.  1-iii.  7  continues  the  same  theme.  The  prophet  urges 
repentance  (ii.  1-3),  which  will  alone  suffice  to  rescue  the  people 
from  the  doom  that  is  destined  to  overwhelm  the  Philistines 
(vers.  4-7),  Moab  and  Ammon  (vers.  8-11),  Ethiopia  (ver.  12),  and 
Nineveh  itself  (vers.  13-15).  In  iii.  1-7  Jerusalem  is  again 
addressed  and  her  sins  recapitulated,  especially  those  of  her 
governing  classes. 

(c)  Ch.  iii.  8-20. — In  the  concluding  section  a  brighter  future 
dawns.  The  effects  of  the  judgment  will  be  made  manifest  in  a 
jiurified  community,  and  the  universal  acknowledgment  of 
Jahveh. 

Integrity  of  the  Book. — The  general  sequence  of  the 
thought  is  coherent  enough,  but  there  are  indications 
that  the  text  has  been  revised  and  worked  over  in  places. 
Not  improbably  ii.  8-11  is  a  later  interpolation  (ver.  11 
shows  the  influence  of  Deutero-Isaiah),  as  also  are  iii.  9- 
10  and  14-20  (the  latter  both  in  phraseology  and  thought 
completely  Deutero-Tsaianic).  [The  description  of  the 
devastating  effects  of  the  judgment  in  ch.  i.  may  have 
been  suggested  by  the  Scythian  invasion.] 

(x)  Haggai  {cf.  Ottley,  H.P.,  pp.  78-80). 

The  prophet  Haggai  is  mentioned  in  conjunction  with 
Zechariah  {cf.  Ezra  iv.  24;  v.  1,  2;  vi.  14)  as  having 
come  forward  and  urged  upon  the  Jews  of  Jerusalem, 
some  sixteen  years  after  the  return  from  Babylon  (536), 
the  duty  of  rebuilding  the  Temple.  This  happened  in 
520,  and  as  the  result  of  the  prophet’s  exhortations  the 
work  was  taken  up  in  earnest  and  finished  in  516  b.c. 
Probably  Haggai  at  this  time  was  an  old  man  (he  had 
seen  apparently  the  old  Temple  before  its  destruction  in 
586)  while  Zechariah  was  quite  young. 

Contents  and  Analysis  of  the  Book. — The  theme  of  the 
little  Book  is  the  rebuilding  of  the  Temple.  It  falls  into 
four  sections  which  are  precisely  dated,  viz.  («)  ch.  i., 
(6)  ii.  1-9,  (c)  ii.  10-19,  and  {d)  ii.  20-23. 

{x)  Ch.  i. — On  the  1st  day  of  the  6th  month  of  the  2nd  year 


THE  WRITING  PROPHETS 


119 


of  Darius  (=  520  b.c.)  the  prophet  urges  the  people  no  longer  to 
delay  the  work  of  rebuilding  the  Temple.  They  themselves  are 
dwelling  in  ceiled  houses,  while  Jahveh’s  House  lies  in  ruins.  As 
a  consequence  they  are  suffering  from  drought  and  failure  of  the 
crops — a  signal  mark  of  the  Divine  displeasure.  In  vers.  12-15 
the  practical  effect  of  the  prophet’s  words  is  described. 

(6)  Ch.  a.  1-9. — On  the  2lst  day  of  the  7th  month  the  prophet 
encourages  those  who  might  have  seen  the  Solomonic  Temple  in 
its  glory,  and  be  tempted  to  draw  unfavourable  comparisons. 
The  later  glory  of  the  Temple  will  surpass  its  earlier  splendour, 
because  of  the  gifts  of  the  Gentiles. 

(c)  Ch.  a. .  10-19. — On  the  24th  day  of  the  9th  month  the 
prophet,  by  an  illustration  drawn  from  the  ritual  of  the 
ceremonial  law,  teaches  the  people  that  they  are  in  a  state 
equivalent  to  levitical  uncleanness  so  long  as  the  Temple  remains 
unbuilt. 

[d)  Ch.  a.  20-23. — On  the  same  day  Haggai  encourages 
Zerubbabel — the  representative  of  the  old  Davidic  line — with  the 
assurance  that  he  will  receive  special  tokens  of  the  Divine 
favour. 

Character  of  the  Book. — The  prophecy^  as  a  whole^  is 
simple  and  unornate_,  and  its  diction  hardly  rises  above 
the  level  of  pure  prose.  But  its  very  simplicity  and 
earnestness  make  its  appeal  all  the  more  forcible. 

(xi)  Zechariah  {cf.  Ottley^  11. F.,  pp.  80-82,  92-94). 

(1)  Contents  and  Analysis. — The  Book  of  Zechariah 
falls  into  two  well-marked  and  distinct  divisions,  viz. 
(a)  ch.  i.-viii. ,  and  (6)  ch.  ix.-xiv. 

(a)  Ch.  i.-viii.  consist  of  (i)  an  introductory. section  (i.  1-6), 
dated  520  b.c.,  containing  an  appeal  to  the  lessons  of  the  past 
aflid  an  earnest  exhortation  to  repentance  ;  (ii)  a  group  of  eight 
visions  (i.  7-vi.  8)  all  bearing  one  date,  viz.  the  24th  day  of 
the  11th  month  [i.e.  Shebat=: Jan.-Feb.)  of  the  2nd  year  of 
Darius  (=Jan.-reb.  519  b.c.).  The  first  vision  (i.  7-17)  is  that 
of  the  angelic  horsemen  (the  angelic  scouts  who  are  Jahveh’s 
messengers  upon  the  earth,  cf.  Job  i.  7).  They  report  that  all 
is  quiet,  there  is  no  sign  of  the  political  upheaval  promised  by 
Haggai  (ii.  6  f.,  21  f.)  which  was  to  herald  a  Messianic  crisis. 
The  divine  reply  given  to  the  angel-interpreter  is  a  message 
of  consolation  and  promise. 

The  second  vision  (i.  18-2l=ii.  1-4  Heb.)  is  that  of  the  four 
horns  (representing  the  heathen  powers  that  have  oppressed 
Israel)  and  the  four  smiths  (who  symbolise  the  instruments  for 
punishing  the  former).  The  third  vision  (ii.  l-5=ii.  5-9  Heb.) 
gives  a  symbolical  description  of  the  new  city  of  Jerusalem.  The 
vision  is  followed  by  a  lyric  piece  in  the  style  of  Isa.  xl.  ff., 
which  may  be  a  composition  of  earlier  date  (it  apparently  pre¬ 
supposes  that  the  exile  is  not  yet  at  an  end).  The  fourth  vision 


120 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LITERATURE 

(ch.  iii.)  depicts  the  community  in  the  person  of  the  High  Priest 
Joshua  arraigned  before  God  by  the  Satan  (the  accusing  angel). 
The  jilthy  garments  of  Joshua  (representing  the  guilt  of  the 
community)  are  taken  off ;  he  is  clothed  with  festal  robes,  and 
the  advent  of  the  Messiah  (the  Brayich  or  Sprout ;  cf.  Jer.  xxiii. 
5,  xxxiii.  15)  is  promised.  The  fifth  vision  (ch.  iv.)  is  that  of 
the  golden  candlestick  and  the  two  olive-trees.  [The  text  appears 
to  be  in  disorder;  probably  vers.  66-lOa  should  be  read  at  the 
vers.  l-6a,  106-14,  66-lOa.]  The  two  olive-trees  probably 
symbolise  the  religious  and  civil  heads  of  the  community,  viz. 
Joshua  and  Zerubbabel,  who  are  to  share  equally  in  the  work  of 
restoring  and  maintaining  the  Temple  (  =  the  golden  candlestick). 
^  1  visions,  viz.  the  sixth  (that  of  the  flying  volume, 

V.  ^4)  and  the  seventh  (that  of  the  woman  in  the  Bphali-measure, 
v*_  5-11)  portray  the  purification  of  the  land  from  crime  and 
wickedness.  The  eighth  and  last  vision  (vi.  1-8)  is  that  of  the 
four  chariots  of  the  winds.  Like  the  first  it  includes  within  its 
survey  the  whole  earth,  but  unlike  the  former,  which  explains  the 
postponement  of  the  Messianic  crisis,  this  represents  the  crisis  as 
begun.  The  ^  changed  standpoint  finds  its  explanation  in  the 
intervening  visions  where  the  moral  and  religious  regeneration  of 
Israel,  which  was  a  necessary  preliminary,  is  described  [vi.  9-15 
forms  a  historical  appendix] ;  (iii)  there  follows  in  ch.  vii.  (date 
518  B.c.)  an  oracle  concerning  the  fasts  [certain  fasts,  commemorat- 
ing  the  sad  events  in  connection  with  the  destruction  of  the 
Temple  and  the  holy  city,  had  come  to  be  observed  during  the 
exile  (vii.  3,  5;  cf.  viii.  19)]. 

(iv)  Ch.  viii.  contains  ten  short  oracles,  forming  a  decalogue 
and  summing  up  the  prophet’s  teaching.  A  delightful  picture  is 
Messianic  age  which  is  dawning.  All  the  fast-days 
shall  be  turned  into  days  of  gladness. 

(6)  Ch.  ijc.-xiv.  contain  two  distinct  prophecies,  viz. 
(i)  ch.  ix.-xi.,  with  which  xiii.  7-9  should  probably  be 
reckoned  ;  and  (ii)  xii.  1-xiii.  6  and  xiv. 

(i)  Ch.  ix.-xi.  and  xiii.  7-9. — Ch.  ix.  depicts  a  judgment  as 
about  to  fall  on  various  parts  of  Syria  and  Palestine  (Damascus, 
Hamath,  Tyre,  and  Sidon,  and  the  principal  cities  of  the  Philis¬ 
tines)  ;  this  leads  to  the  conversion  of  the  remnant  of  the  Philis¬ 
tines  and  their  incorporation  into  Israel.  These  events  prepare 
ree  way  for  the  advent  of  the  Messiah  and  the  Messianic  age. 
Ch._  X.  begins  with  a  warning  against  trusting  in  teraphim  and 
diviners,  and  unworthy  rulers.  Judah  and  Ephraim  under  new 
leaders  will  gain  a  decisive  victory  over  their  enemies.  Ch.  xi. 
gives  a  picture  of  war  bursting  over  the  north  and  east  of  the 
land.  An  allegory,  in  which  the  prophet  and  the  people  are 
mainly  concerned,  follows.  The  people  are  represented  as  reject- 
mg  the  divine  guidance,  and  suffering  the  consequences  (dis- 
persion  and  ruin).  A  purified  remnant  will  constitute  the  faith¬ 
ful  people  of  God  (xiii.  7-9). 


THE  WRITING  PROPHETS 


121 


(ii)  Ch  xii.  \-xiii.  6  and  xiv. — Ch.  xii.  opens  with  a  picture  of 
nations  (including  Judah)  advancing  against  Jerusalem.  Their 
forces  are  routed  and  Jerusalem  is  delivered.  The  population  of 
Jerusalem  have,  apparently,  been  guilty  of  a  judicial  murder, 
but,  seized  with  compunction,  they  mourn  long  and  bitterly  over 
their  crime.  Jerusalem  henceforth  (xiii.  1-6)  is  permanently 
cleansed  from  sin.  In  ch.  xiv.  Jerusalem  is  pictured  as  again 
assaulted  by  the  nations.  The  city  is  captured  and  half  its 
population  carried  into  captivity,  jahveh  intervenes  to  rescue 
the  remnant,  and  the  Messianic  age  begins.  The  nations  who 
survive  acknowledge  Jahveh  by  coming  up  yearly  to  the  Feast  of 
Tabernacles. 

(2)  Composite  Character  and  Authorship  of  the  Book. — 
In  passing  from  ch.  viii.  to  ix.  we  are  transported  into 
a  different  world.  All  the  remarkable  and  peculiar 
characteristics  of  i.-viii.  disappear;  and  new  features  of 
a  peculiar  character  emerge.  The  two  parts  of  the  Book 
cannot  emanate  from  one  and  the  same  author.  Ch.  i.- 
viii.  belong  to  the  prophet  Zechariah  ;  ch.  ix.-xiv.  must 
be  assigned  to  a  different  writer  or  writers. 

Ch.  ix  .-xiv.  have  been  the  subject  of  much  discussion  which 
cannot  be  detailed  here.  Numerous  indications  point  to  a  post- 
exilic  origin  {e.g.  the  yearly  pilgrimage  of  all  nations  to  Jerusalem 
to  the  Feast  of  Tabernacles  in  xiv.;  the  announcement  of  the  ter¬ 
mination  of  prophecy  and  its  expulsion  together  with  the  spirit  of 
uncleanness,  xiii.  1-6 ;  in  ix.  13  the  heathen  world-power  appears 
in  the  guise  of  Greece,  the  independent  position  of  the  ‘  House  of 
Levi’  beside  the  ‘House  of  David,’  etc.  Probably  some  part  of 
the  Greek  period  (after  331)  is  indicated  by  such  passages.  There 
is  a  strong  apocalyptic  tinge,  and  the  writer  (or  writers)  appears 
to  have  been  steeped  in  the  older  literature  of  the  Old  Testament. 
Whether  the  chapters  emanate  from  one  author  or  more  is  uncer¬ 
tain.  The  two  separate  headings  (ix.  1  and  xi.  1)  rather  suggest 
the  latter  alternative.  It  is  probable  that  ix.-xi.  with  xiii.  7-9 
dates  from  the  eighth  century  b.c.,  and  was  subsequently  modified, 
and  that  the  rest  of  the  latter  part  is  post-exilic. 

(xii)  Malachi  (cf.  Ottley,  II.  P.,  pp.  87-90). 

(1)  Contents  and  Analysis. — The  prophecy  of  Malachi 
may  be  divided  into  six  sections  : — 

(i)  Ch.  i.  2-5,  which  forms  the  exordium,  contains  a  vindica¬ 
tion  of  Jahveh’s  love  towards  Israel  (against  cavillers). 

(ii)  Ch.  i.  6-ii.  9. — Israel,  however,  unmindful  of  the  divine 
favour,  does  not  honour  Jahveh.  The  priests  are  neglectful  in 
the  discharge  of  their  sacred  functions,  and  the  service  of  the 
sanctuary  is  brought  into  contempt.  Severe  punishment  is 
threatened. 


122 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LITERATURE 


(iii)  Gh.  ii.  10-16. — Those  who  had  divorced  their  Israelitish 
wives  and  married  foreign  women  are  denounced. 

(iv)  Ch.  ii.  11 -iii.  6.— Against  those  who  impugned  the 
righteousness  of  the  divine  government  of  the  world  the  prophet 
announces  the  approach  of  a  day  of  judgment,  when  Jahveh 
‘shall  suddenly  come  to  His  Temple.’ 

(v)  Gh.  iii.  7-l2.— Drought  and  famine  are  the  divine  punish¬ 
ment  for  the  people’s  neglect  in  paying  tithes  and  other  dues. 
On  the  other  hand,  a  blessing  is  promised  upon  those  who  fulfil 
these  obligations. 

(vi)  Ch.  iii.  IZ-iv.  6. — Tlie  prophet  again  meets  complaints  as 
to  God’s  justice  by  declaring  that  the  day  is  coming  when  Jahveh 
will  make  manifest  who  are  His.  Then  the  difiference  ‘  between 
the  righteous  and  the  wicked,  between  him  that  serveth  God  and 
him  that  serveth  Him  not,’  will  be  made  clear.  The  Book  con¬ 
cludes  with  an  exhortation  to  observe  ‘  the  law  of  Moses  my 
servant,’  and  a  promise  of  the  coming  of  Elijah  the  prophet. 

(2)  General  Character  and  Date  of  the  Book. — The  pro¬ 
phecy  clearly  belongs  to  the  post-exilic  period  {cf,  1,  8_, 
‘  thy  governor/  the  same  word  that  is  used  in  Hag.  i.  1 ; 
Neh.  V.  14,  xii.  16,  etc.),  after  the  Temple  had  been 
rebuilt  (i.  10,  iii.  1).  A  number  of  indications  suggest 
a  time  shortly  before  the  reform  of  Ezra-Nehemiah  as 
the  period  of  the  composition  of  the  Book  (c.  450  b.c.). 

Three  abuses  are  especially  attacked  in  Malachi,  viz.  the  de¬ 
generacy  of  the  priesthood,  intermarriage  with  foreign  women,  and 
remissness  in  the  payment  of  sacred  dues.  These  abuses,  especially 
the  two  last,  were  rampant  in  the  age  of  Ezra-Nehemiah ;  and 
the  latter  exerted  themselves  strenuously  to  correct  them  [cf.  Ezra 
ix.  2 ;  x.  3, 16-44 ;  Neh.  x.  30,  32  ff.;  xiii.  4  flf.,  15  ff.,  23  ff.,  28  f.). 

(3)  Authorship  of  ‘  Malachi.’ — It  is  highly  doubtful 
whether  the  name  ^  Malachi  ’  is  a  personal  name  at  all. 
The  superscription  (i.  1)  is  very  probably  due  to  a  mis¬ 
understanding  of  iii.  1  {cf.  LXX.). 

A  peculiar  feature  is  the  recurrence  of  the  strange  expression 
burden  {oracle)  of  the  word  of  Jahveh  in  Zech.  ix.  1,  xii.  1,  and 
Mai.  i.  1  (not  elsewhere).  In  Zech.  ix.  1  this  superscription 
appears  to  be  original,  but  secondary  in  xii.  1  and  Mai.  iii.  1. 
We  may  infer  that  Zech.  ix.-xiv.  and  Malachi  were  originally 
anonymous  pieces,  which  were  appended  to  the  end  of  the  pro¬ 
phetic  collection  (Zech.  ix.-xiv.  as  being  the  longer  first,  and 
then  the  shorter  ‘Malachi  ’).  Malachi  was  then  separated  off  and 
provided  with  an  independent  superscription  in  order  to  make  up 
the  number  of  the  short  prophetic  writings  to  twelve,  while 
Zech.  ix.-xiv.  became  incorporated  into  Zechariah,  as  Isaiah  xl.- 
Ixvi.  into  Isaiah  [Zech.  xii.,  marking  a  fresh  division  in  what  was 
regarded  as  the  Book  of  Zechariah,  was  provided  with  a  separate 
heading  later,  modelled  on  ix.  1]. 


C.  POETICAL  AND  DIDACTIC  LITERATURE 


CHAPTER  IV.— THE  POETICAL  AND  DIDACTIC 

BOOKS 

(pSALMSj  PROVERBS^  JOB^  THE  FIVE  MEGILLOTh) 

§  1.  The  Psalms. 

Literature. — Commentaries  by  F.  Delitzsch  (Engl,  transl.  3 
vols.),  Perowne  (2vols.),  Cheyne  (transl.  with  short  notes, 
1888),  Briggs  (7.(7.  (7.),  Kirkpatrick  (in  Cambridge  Bible)  ; 
also  Cheyne’s  The  Origin  and  Religious  Ideas  of  the  Psalter 
(BamptonLecturesfor  1889),  andRobertson  Smith,  O.T.J.G.'^, 
Lect.  VII.  ;  cf.  also  the  articles  Poetry  in  Hastings’  D.B.  (by 
Budde),  and  Poetical  Literature  in  Encycl.  Bihl.  ;  Lowth, 
De  sacra  poesi  Hehraeorum  praelectiones  academicae  (Oxon. 
1753  ;  translated  by  G.  Gregory  1847)  is  still  important. 

(1)  Hebrew  Poetry. — The  subject  of  Hebrew  poetry  can 
only  be  alluded  to  in  the  briefest  manner  here.  For 
adequate  discussion  of  its  character  and  laws  reference 
must  be  made  elsewhere.^ 

As  regards  its  character,  Hebrew  poetry  is  almost 
exclusively  subjective,  and  is  represented  almost  wholly 
by  lyric  and  gnomic  poems.  The  epos  is  entirely  absent, 
and  the  drama  is  only  represented,  if  at  all,  in  a  rudi¬ 
mentary-  form.  The  poetry  preserved  in  Scripture  is, 
of  course,  mainly  religious  in  character.  But  specimens 
of  what  was  no  doubt  a  large  literature  of  secular  poetry 
have  survived. 

As  examples  cf.  Gen.  iv.  23  f.  Lamech’s  song  of  triumph  over 
the  invention  of  metal  weapons ;  the  folk-songs  in  Numb.  xxi. 
17  f.,  27-30;  David’s  two  elegies  cited  in  II.  Sam.  i.  19-27,  and 
iii.  33  f. 


1  In  addition  to  the  works  referred  to  above  under  Literature, 
cf.  Driver,  L.O.T.,  ch.  vii.,  and  Cornill,  Introduction,  pp.  15-26 
(for  an  account  of  metrical  theories). 


12S 


124 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LITERATURE 


^  Form  of  Hebrew  Poetry.— The  predominant  element 
in  Hebrew  poetry  is  the  couplet— of  two  lines,  the 
second  of  which  in  some  way  reinforces  and  completes  the 
first.  The  significance  of  this  parallelism  of  clauses 
{paraUehsmus  membroriim)  was  first  seen  by  Lowth,  who 
distinguished  other  and  more  complicated  forms  of  it. 


Lowth  classifies  the  following  varieties  : — 

(«)  Synonymous  Parallelism  (the  commonest  form)  where 
the  second  line  more  or  less  echoes  the  first ;  e.g.  : 

O  praise  the  Lord  all  ye  nations  ; 

Laud  Him,  all  ye  peoples.  (Ps.  cxvii.  1. ) 

(6)  Antithetic  Parallelism  (the  second  line  enforcing  the  first 
by  a  contrasted  thought) ;  e.g.  : 

For  the  Lord  knoweth  the  way  oj  the  righteous  ; 

But  the  way  of  the  wicked  shall  perish.  (Ps.  i.  6.) 

(This  variety  is  frequent  in  gnomic  poetry.) 

(c)  Synthetic  or  Constructive  Parallelism  (the  second  line 
completing  and  supplementing  the  first— the  parallelism  being 
one  of  form  only) ;  e.g.  :  ® 


Yet  have  I  set  my  king 

Upon  Zion  my  holy  hill.  (Ps.  ii.  6.) 

Parallelism  (or  ‘ascending  rhythm’)  should  be 
added  to  the  above.  Here  the  second  line  takes  up  a  word  or 
phrase  of  the  first  line  (which  is  logically  incomplete)  and  develops 
It.  J-tiis  kind  of  rhythm  is  of  rare  occurrence,  and  ‘is  all  but 
peculiar  to  the  most  elevated  poetry  ’  (Driver).  A  good  example 
is  the  lollowing :  ^ 


Give  unto  the  Lord,  O  ye  sons  of  the  mighty. 

Give  unto  the  Lord  glory  and  strength. 

[For  other  examples  cf.  Judg.  v.  4&,  7,  19a,  236 ;  Ps.  xxix.  5,  8; 
xcvi.  13 ;  Ex.  XV,  1G6.]  ’ 

Besides  the  distich,  poups  of  three,  four,  and  (rarely)  of  five 
Imes  (tnstichs,  tetrastichs,  and  pentastichs),  exhibiting  various 
kinds  of  parallelism,  occur  in  the  Old  Testament.  • 

The  most  clearly  defined  rhythm  in  Hebrew  poetry  is  that  of 
the  so-called  .^ma  (or  ‘dirge’),  many  examples  of  which  occur 
in  the  Old  Testament.  Here  a  long  line  is  divided  by  a  caesura 
into  two  parts  of  unequal  length  (a  long  and  a  short ;  e.g.  : 

H ow  art  thou  fallen  from  heaven, 

O  Lucifer,  son  of  the  Dawn!  (Isa.  xiv.  12. ) 

It  should  be  added  that  there  is  no  clearly  defined  system  of 
strict  syllabic  metre  in  the  Hebrew  poetry  of  the  Old  Testament  • 
but  a  metre  of  a  kind  does  occur  which  is  regulated  by  the 
number  of  accentual  beats  in  a  line.  There  are  also  clear  cases 
01  lines  being  grouped  in  stanzas  or  strophes  of  a  certain  fixed 


THE  POETICAL  AND  DIDACTIC  BOOKS  125 


number ;  c.g.  Isa.  li.  17-lii.  12  is  an  elegiac  poem  in  the 
rhytlim  which  falls  into  five  seven-lined  strophes.  ^ 

(2)  Title  and  Divisions  of  the  Psalter. — The  Psalter  is 
a  collection  of  one  hundred  and  fifty  poems  of  a  religious 
character^  of  various  authorship  and  date.  In  their 
collected  form  they  bear  the  general  title  in  the  Hebrew 
Bible  of  thesefer  tehillhn  (contracted  into  tilltm  or  tillin'), 
i.e.  Hhe  Book  of  praise-songs/  ^Hymn  Book’ — a  desig¬ 
nation  which  indicates  the  liturgical  character  of  the 
collection  as  a  whole.  The  poems  have  been  collected 
for  use  in  divine  worship  and  for  religious  edification. 

The  modern  designation  ‘  Psalms  ’  is  derived  from  the  LXX. 
rendering  of  tehillim,  viz.  'PaX/iot. 

In  the  Hebrew  Bible  {cf.  also  R.V.)  the  Psalter  is 
divided  into  five  books^  viz.  (1)  Pss.  i.-xli.,(2)  xlii.-lxxii.^ 
(.3)  Ixxiii.-lxxxix.,  (4)  xc.-cvi.,  and  (5)  cvii.-cl. 

The  LXX.  and  Masoretic  enumerations  differ  in  detail.  In 
LXX.  (so  Vulgate)  Pss.  ix.  and  x.  form  a  single  psalm  (as  they 
must  have  done  originally  in  the  Hebrew  text ;  notice  the 
alphabetic  arrangement  extending  over  the  two  psalms),  as  also  is 
the  case  with  Pss.  cxiv.  cxv.  On  the  other  hand,  Pss.  cxvi.  and 
cxlvii.  each  are  divided  into  two  psalms  in  the  Greek.  Con¬ 
sequently  the  double  numeration  extends  from  Ps.  ix.  22  to 
cxlvi.  11  (Greek).  ThusPs.  x.  (inLXX.)  =  Ps.  xi.  ;  xliii.  (LXX.  )  = 
xliv.,  and  so  on.  Each  of  the  first  four  books  closes  with  a 
doxology  (so  LXX.),  while  in  the  fifth  Book  the  last  psalm  (150) 
seems  to  take  the  place  of  such. 

(3)  The  Psalm-Titles. — All  except  thirty-four  of  the 
Psalms  hear  superscriptions.  These  are  largely  made  up 
of  directions  of  a  musical-liturgical  kind.  The  most 
important,  for  the  purposes  of  Introduction,  are  data 
contained  in  the  superscriptions  regarding  authorship."^ 

{a)  To  Moses  Ps.  xc.  is  ascribed ;  (6)  to  David  the  authorship 
of  no  less  than  seventy-three  psalms  (nearly  half  the  entire 
collection)  is  ascribed;  viz.  in  Book  I.  (i.-xli.)  all  except  four 
(Pss.  i.,  ii.,  X.,  and  xxxiii.) ;  in  Book  II.  eighteen  psalms  (viz.  li.- 
Ixv.,  and  Ixviii.-lxx. ) ;  in  Book  III.  only  one,  viz.  Ps.  Ixxxvi.  ;  in 
Book  IV.  two  (viz.  ci.  and  ciii. ) ;  in  Book  V.  fifteen  (viz.  cviii.-cx., 
cxxii.,  cxxiv.,  cxxxi.,  cxxxiii.,  cxxxviii. -cxlv. 

(c)  To  Solomon,  Pss.  Ixxii.  and  cxxvii. 

(d)  To  Asaph,  twelve  psalms  (viz.  1.,  Ixxiii.-lxxxiii.). 

^  For  this  and  many  other  examples  see  the  present  writer’s 
critical  translation  of  The  Book  of  Isaiah  (1908). 

•  2  All  indicated  by  the  so-called  lamed  auctoris  (^). 


126 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LITERATURE 

(e)  To  Heman  the  Ezrahite,  Ps.  Ixxxviii.  (one  of  two  titles). 

(/)  To  Ethan  the  Ezrahite,  Ps.  Ixxxix. 

{9)  To  the  Sons  of  Eorah,  eleven  psalms  (viz.  xlii.,  xliv.-xlix., 
Ixxxiv,,  Ixxxv.,  Ixxxvii.,  and  Ixxxviii.). 

Asaph,  Heman,  and  Ethan  are  the  names  of  the 
traditional  founders  of  the  families  or  guilds  of  Temple- 
singers  who  assisted  in  the  worship  of  the  second 
Temple.  The  ^  Korahites  Sons  of  Korah  ’)  are  referred 
to  hy  the  Chronicler  as  gate-keepers  of  the  Temple  (cf. 
I.  Chron.  ix.  19  ;  xxvi.  1-19).  From  II.  Chron.  xx.  19 
it  may  be  inferred  that  they  were  engaged  in  the  public 
worship  of  the  Temple. 

(4)  The  Formation  of  the  Psalter.— Numerous  indications 
go  to  show  that  the  Psalter  reached  its  present  shape 
through  several  stages,  and  out  of  pre-existing  smaller 
collections.  Thus  double  recensions  occur  of  one  and 
the  same  psalm  (Ps.  liii.  =Ps.  xiv.  ;  Ps.  Ixx.  =Ps.  xl.  13- 
17;  Ps.  cviii.  =  Ps.  Ivii.  7-11 -fix.  5-12),  and  several 
distinct  groups  of  psalms  stand  out  in  the  different 
books. 

Tims  there  is  a  group  of  Korah-psalms  (xlii.-xlix.),  of  Asaph- 
psalms  (Ixxiii.-lxxxiii.),  of  Hodu-psalms  (cv.-cvii.  :  hodu=‘ give 
thanks  ’) ;  the  ‘psalms of  degrees  (or  ascents)  ’  (cxx.-cxxxiv.),  and 
the  Hallelujah-psalms  (cxi.-cxiii.  and  cxlvi.-cl.).  The  ‘HalleU 
(Pss.  cxiii.-cxviii.)  also  forms  a  group  by  itself,  being  treated  in 
J ewish  literature  as  a  liturgical  unit. 

There  are  also  indications  that  some  dislocation  has 
taken  place,  and  that  the  present  position  of  the  groups 
is  not  the  original  one. 

The  fact  that  the  subscription  in  Ps.  Ixxii.  20  states  that  ‘  tlie 
prayers  of  David  are  ended  ’  must  originally  have  implied  that  up 
to  that  point  the  writer  can  only  have  read  Z)a^;^■^^-psalms  In 
the  present  arrangement,  however,  a  group  of  Korahite-psalms 
(xlii.-xlix.)  and  one  Asaphic  one  (1.)  precede.  Hence  Ewald 
plausibly  conjectured  that  originally  Pss.  xlii.-l.  stood  after 
Ps.  Ixxii.  On  this  view  the  first  collection  consisted  of  Book  I. 
(Pss.  i.-xli.),  made  up  almost  entirely  of  Davidic-psalms.  The 
second  collection  was  composed  of  {a)  Pss.  li. -Ixxii.  (nearly  all 
Davidic ;  the  subscription  in  Ixxii.  20  is  now  intelligible)  1  (b) 
Pss.  xlii.-xlix.  (Korahite),  and  (c)  Pss.  1.,  Ixxiii.-lxxxiii.  Asaphic 
now  all  together,  and  not  disjoined  by  li. -Ixxii.),  with  an  appendix 
(Pss.  Ixxxiv. -Ixxxix.)  added  by  a  different  hand.  The  third 


1  The  writer  of  the  subscription  may  have  regarded  Ps.  Ixxii 
as  a  prayer  of  David  for  Solomon, 


THE  POETICAL  AND  DIDACTIC  BOOKS  127 


collection  was  composed  of  Pss.  xc.-cl.  It  is  more  liUirgical  in 
character  than  the  two  preceding,  and  includes  smaller  inde¬ 
pendent  groups  (the  Hodu,  Hallel,  Hallelujah-psalms,  and  the 
‘  psalms  of  ascents  ’). 

Thus  the  Psalter  falls  naturally  into  three  parts,  viz.  Pss.  i.- 
xli.,  xlii.-lxxxix.  (divided  at  Ixxii.  20),  and  xc.-cl.  The  division 
into  five  books  is  an  artificial  one,  probably  based  upon  the  five¬ 
fold  division  of  the  Torah  into  five  Books  (the  Pentateuch). 

That  the  Psalms  have  been  redacted  by  different  hands 
is  also  clear  from  the  various  use  of  the  divine  names 
Jahveh  and  Eiohim.  Thus  in  Book  I.  Jahveh  occurs  272 
times^  Eiohim  (absolutely)  15 ;  in  Book  II.  Jahveh  80 
times,  Eiohim  104  ;  in  Book  III.  in  Pss.  Ixxiii.-lxxxiii. 
/a/iue/i  13  times,  Eiohim  86  times;  but  in  Pss.  Ixxxiv.- 
Ixxxix.  Jahveh  31  times,  Eiohim  7  ;  in  Books  IV.  and  V. 
Jahveh  only  occurs  (except  in  Ps.  cviii.  and  cxliv.  9). 
The  influence  of  this  factor  can  be  seen  in  the  double 
recensions.  Thus  the  Jahveh  of  Pss.  xiv.  and  xl.  is 
altered  to  Eiohim  in  the  duplicate  versions  Pss.  liii. 
and  Ixx. 

From  these  facts  it  follows  that  Books  II.  and  III.  must 
have  been  edited  by  a  different  hand  from  that  which 
redacted  Book  I.  ;  and  Books  IV.  and  V.  by  a  different 
hand  from  that  which  redacted  Books  II.  and  III. 

(5)  Authorship  of  the  Psalms. — That  all  the  psalms 
ascribed  to  David  cannot  be  his  composition  is  obvious 
from  the  internal  evidence,  and  is  generally  admitted. 
If  any  Davidic  psalms  are  to  be  found  in  the  Psalter  it  is 
to  be  presumed  that  they  will  have  been  preserved  mainly 
in  Book  I.,  which  contains  the  oldest  collection.  Ewald, 
from  internal  indications,  was  led  to  ascribe  the  following 
to  David’s  authorship:  Ps.  hi.,  iv.,  vh.,  viii.,  xi.,  xv., 
xviii.,  xix.  1-6,  xxiv.  1-6,  xxiv.  7-10,  xxix.,  xxxii.,  cl.  ;  and 
the  following  fragments  contained  in  later  psalms :  Ps.  lx. 
6-9  [Heb.  8-11],  Ixviii.  18-18  [Heb.  14-19],  cxliv.  12-14. 

This  selection  is  to  a  great  extent  subjective,  being  based  upon  a 
sense  of  the  presumed  fitness  of  the  contents  of  the  psalms  in 
question  to  David’s  character  and  surroundings.  ‘  It  is  possible 
that  Ewald’s  list  of  Davidic  Psalms  is  too  large,  but  it  is  not  clear 
that  none  of  the  Psalms  contained  in  it  are  of  David’s  composi¬ 
tion’  (Driver).  A  strong  case  for  a  truly  Davidic  psalm  can 
be  made  out  for  Ps.  xviii.,  of  which  a  recension  is  given  in 
II.  Sara.  xxii.  A  close  examination  of  it  shows  that  this  psalm 
is  copiposite  in  structure.  But  the  evidence  suggests  that  it  may 
be  in  part  by  David. 


128 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LITERA'ILTIE 


As  a  whole  the  Psalter  must  be  regarded  as  the  hymn-y 
prayer-,  and  religious  instruction-Book  of  the  community  of 
the  Second  Temple.  The  question  that  arises^  then^  in 
this  connection  is^  were  the  individual  psalms  designed 
from  the  first  for  liturgical  use  ? 

That  this  was  the  case  with  most,  if  not  all,  of  the  psalms  in 
Books  IV.  and  V .  seems  clear.  But  in  the  earlier  books  there  are 
indications  that  individual  (non-liturgical  ?)  psalms  have  been 
revised  and  adapted  for  liturgical  use.  Thus  what  was  clearly 
a  single  alphabetic  poem  has  been  divided  into  Pss.  ix.  and  x. ;  the 
liturgical  conclusions  in  Pss.  xxv.  (22)  and  xxxiv.  (23)  are  later 
insertions.  In  some  cases  fragments  of  originally  distinct  poems 
have  been  combined  so  as  to  form  a  single  psalm  {e.g.  Ps.  cviii., 
xix.,  xxiv.,  xl.,  andcxliv. ).  In  these  (and  possibly  other)  cases 
pre-existing  and  independent  material  has  been  utilised  for  the 
psalm-collection,  and  the  probability  remains  tliat  some  of  this 
material  is  pre-exilic. 

(6)  Date  of  the  Formation  of  the  Psalm-collection.— Thus 
the  terminus  a  quo  for  the  formation  of  tlie  Psalm- 
collections,  even  of  the  earliest,  will  be  the  period  of  the 
second  Temple.  The  terminus  ad  quern  for  the  formation 
of  the  complete  collection  is  determined  by  the  Prologue 
of  the  grandson  of  Ben  Sira  (132  b.c.).  That  the  collection 
was  substantially  complete  and  regarded  as  sacred  in  the 
Maccabean  period  may  be  inferred  from  the  fact  that 
the  only  direct  quotation  from  the  Bible  that  occurs  in 
I.  Macc.  (written  c.  100  b.c.)  is  from  Ps.  Ixxix.  2-3,  which 
is  there  cited  as  Holy  Scripture. 

That  poems  composed  in  the  Maccabean  period  have  been  ad¬ 
mitted  into  the  Psalter  is  practically  certain.  Theodore  of 
Mopsuestia  recognised  seventeen  psalms  as  such  :  viz.  xliv.,  xlvii., 
Iv.-lx.,  Ixii.,  Ixix.,  Ixxiv.,  Ixxix.,  Ixxx.,  Ixxxiii.,  cviii.,  cix.,  cxliv. 
The  most  certain  of  these  are  xliv.,  Ixxiv.,  Ixxix.,  and  Ixxxiii. 
Not  improbably  the  Hallel  group  (cxiii.-cxviii.)  was  formed  about 
the  time  of  the  rededication  of  the  Temple  (in  1G5  b.c.).  They 
are  still  recited  every  one  of  the  eight  days  of  the  feast  of 
Hanukka  [Dedication).  According  to  Jewish  tradition,  Ps.  xxx. 
must  belong  to  the  same  period  [cf.  superscription). 

But  the  Maccabean  psalms  must  be  regarded  as  comparatively 
late  insertions  into  a  large  earlier  collection. 

[For  a  full  discussion  of  the  question  of  Davidic  authorship,  cf. 
Driver,  L.O.  T.,  pp.  351  ff.  _  It  is  remarkable  that  the  most  certain 
specimens  of  David’s  poetical  art  that  have  survived  are  purely 
secular  in  character  (II.  Sam.  i.  19-27  and  iii.  33  f.).  Elsewhere 
he  is  mentioned  as  a  skilful  musician  (I.  Sam.  xvi.  18)  and  (possibly) 
as  an  inventor  of  musical  instruments  (Amos  vi.  5).  The  original 


V 


THE  POETICAL  AND  DIDACTIC  BOOKS  12D 

meaning  of  the  title  ‘of  David’  (or  ‘Davidic’),  as  applied  to 
certain  psalms,  may  have  become  obscure.  It  may  have  denoted 
a  collection  of  psalms,  the  beginnings  of  which  were  formed  early 
in  the  pre-exilic  period  (to  be  sung  by  a  choir  which  traced  its 
origin  to  David  ?).] 


§  2.  Proverbs. 

Commentaries  by  Delitzsch,  andToy(/.  C.  C.\  1899: 
c/.  also  Cheyne,  Job  and  Solomon  (1887),  pp.  117-178. 

(1)  General  Character  of  the  Book.— The  Book  of  Pro¬ 
verbs  belongs  to  the  Wisdoyn-Literature  of  the  Old 
Testament  (Hoknia).  It  is  made  up  of  a  collection  of 
aphorisms  (Heb.  meshalmi)  of  the  most  diverse  kind  and 
form^  containing  shrewd  reflections  and  maxims  on  the 
conduct  and  affairs  of  life.  The  object  of  the  collection 
is  to  teach  and  enforce  wisdom.’ 

The  Hebrew  conception  of  ‘  wisdom  ’  {fiokmd)  has  as  its  domin¬ 
ating  principle  the  fear  of  God.  It  is  essentially  practical— not 
speculative — in  character.  Hence  its  main  energies  were  directed 
to  questions  of  conduct.  Practical  sagacity  in  the  conduct  of  the 
affairs  of  life,  skill  in  judgment  (Solomon),  in  interpreting  riddles 
and  dreams,  earned  a  title  to  wisdom  (c/.  Gen.  xli.  39,  e.p.  where 
Joseph  is  termed  ‘discreet  and  wise’  by  Pharaoh).  Edom  was 
specially  famed  for  ‘wisdom’  {cf.  Obad.  8;  Jer.  xlix.  7).  ‘Wise 
men’  are  mentioned  in  I.  Kings  iv.  31,  and  it  may  be  inferred  from 
other  references  to  them  in  the  Old  Testament  that  they  must 
have  formed  a  distinct  class  or  school  {cf.  Jer.  xviii.  18  ;  Prov.  i.  G, 
xxii.  17,  xxiv.  23;  Job  xviii.  18).  Their  outlook  on  life  was 
broad— not  distinctively  national  or  particularistic.  ‘The  wise 
men  took  for  granted  the  main  postulates  of  Israel’s  creed,  and 
applied  themselves  rather  to  the  observation  of  human  character 
as  such,  seeking  to  analyse  conduct,  studying  action  in  its  conse¬ 
quences,  and  establishing  morality,  upon  the  basis  of  principles 
common  to  humanity  at  large.  On  account  of  their  prevailing 
disregard  of  national  points  of  view,  and  their  tendency  to  charac¬ 
terise  and  estimate  human  nature  under  its  most  general  aspects, 
they  have  been  named,  not  inappropriately,  the  Humanists  of 
Israel. ’1  Their  teaching  embraces  moral  advice,  and  such  sub¬ 
jects  as  the  education  of  the  young  {cf.  Prov.  i.-ix.).  The  Books 
of  Job  and  Ecclesiastes — which  deal  with  the  problems  of  human 
nature — also  belong  to  this  Literature. 

(2)  Contents  and  Analysis  of  the  Book. — The  Book  falls 
into  several  distinct  parts^  which  differ  in  character  and 
are  marked  by  special  superscriptions^  or  introductions. 

1  Driver,  op.  cit.  p.  309. 


I 


130 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LITERATURE 


These  are  (a)  ch.  a  long  section  forming  the  introduction 

to  the  whole  Book  (with  i.  1-6  as  a  sort  of  heading).  In  the  form 
of  a  father  speaking  to  a  son,  the  disciple  is  warned  against  the 
dangers  and  temptations  he  is  likely  to  meet,  and  Wisdom  is  com¬ 
mended  to  him  as  guide  and  friend.  In  ch.  viii.  Wisdom  is 
introduced  as  speaking,  while  ch.  ix.  contains  an  allegory  in 
which  Wisdom  and  Folly  each  in  turn  invite  men  to  come  to  them. 
These  chapters  are  poetical  in  form,  and  make  up  a  flowing  and 
continuous  discourse  (differing  in  this  respect  from  the  short, 
pointed  apothegms  that  follow  in  ch.  x.  ff. ). 

(6)  Ch.  X.  1-xxii.  16,  with  the  heading  The  Proverbs  of  Solomon, 
forms  the  real  kernel  of  the  Book.  This  section  consists  of  pro¬ 
verbs  properly  so  called,  each  expressed  in  the  form  of  a  couplet, 
and  being  complete  in  itself.  The  larger  number  are  antithetical 
in  structure,  moving  in  the  form  of  statement  and  antithesis. 
Thus: 

A  wise  son  maketh  a  glad  father : 

But  a  foolish  son  is  the  heaviness  of  his  mother. 

In  others  the  second  line  simply  echoes  the  first  or  completes  it : 
sometimes  (but  rarely)  a  figure  or  comparison  is  introduced.! 

(c)  Ch.  xxii.  IT-xxiv.  22,  ‘the  words  of  the  wise.’  Here  the 
short,  pointed  form  of  address  is  abandoned,  and  the  form  of 
(a),  viz.  a  father  speaking  to  a  son,  reappears. 

{d)  Ch.  xxiv.  23-34,  an  appendix  to  the  preceding. 

(g)  Ch.  xxv.-xxix.,  with  the  heading  ‘These  also  are  Proverbs  of 
Solomon,  which  the  men  of  Hezekiah,  king  of  Judah,  copied  out, 
form  an  appendix  to  {h).  Here  the  distich  reappears  (but  not 
quite  regularly).  Proverbs  introducing  a  comparison,  which  are 
rare  in  (6),  are  frequent  in  this  section. 

(/)  Ch.  xxx.-xxxi.  contain  three  appendices,  two  of  which  are 
provided  with  special  superscriptions  :  viz.  ch.  xxx.,  ‘the  words  of 
Agur  the  son  of  Jakeh,  the  oracle’ — a  series  of  obscure  and 
enigmatic  utterances ;  ch.  xxxi.  1-9  consists  of  instructions  to 
King  Lemuel  by  his  mother,  in  which  he  is  warned  against  women 
and  wine ;  and  ch.  xxxi.  10-31  is  an  alphabetic  poem  in  praise  of 
the  virtuous  wife. 

(8)  The  Age  and  Authorship  of  the  Book.—  The  analysis 
shows  quite  clearly  that  the  Book  can  only  have  attained 
its  present  form  by  gradual  stages.  Of  the  different 
sections  ch.  xxv.-xxix.  form,  perhaps,  the  oldest  and 
most  original.  Its  sayings  are  constructed  with  less  con¬ 
scious  art  than  those  of  the  middle  section,  ch.  x.-xxii.  10. 

!  The  Hebrew  term  for  ‘proverb,’  viz.  mdshdl,  properly  denotes 
a  representation,  i.e.  ‘a  statement  not  relating  solely  to  a  single 
fact,  but  standing  for  or  representing  other  similar  facts.’  An  ex¬ 
ample  of  a  popular  ‘  proverb  ’  is,  ‘  Is  not  Saul  among  the  prophets  ?  ’ 
(I.  Sam.  X.  12,  etc).  But  the  examples  in  the  Book  of  Proverbs 
are  more  in  the  nature  of  artistically  constructed  apothegms. 


THE  POETICAL  AND  DIDACTJC  BOOKS  181 

The  introductory  section,  i.-ix.  and  xxii.  17-xxiv.  34,  with 
XXX.  and  xxxi.,  will  be  the  youngest  parts  of  the  collection. 
On  the  question  as  to  the  age  of  the  various  parts  of  the 
Book  there  has  been  much  difference  of  opinion. 

C/i.  X.  \-xxii.  16  (which  is  regarded  by  many  scholars  as  the 
old^est  part  of  the  Book)  is  assigned  by  Delitzsch  to  the  reign  of 
Jehqshaphat,  by  Ewald  to  the  beginning  of  the  eighth  century ; 
ch.  t.-ix.  is  assigned  by  Ewald,  Davidson,  and  Nowack  to  the 
period  just  before  the  Exile. 

Many  scholars,  however,  take  a  different  view,  and  regard  the 
collection  as  substantially  in  all  its  parts  post-exilic  (late  Persian 
or  early  Greek  period).  ‘  All  the  struggles  which  convulsed  and 
dominated  the  prophetic  period  are  over ;  Prophecy  and  Law 
(xxviii.  4-9  j  xxix.  18)  lie  behind  the  Book  of  Proverbs  as  things 
completed  and  closed,  and  the  Book  itself,  taking  its  stand  on  the 
pure  and  lofty  plane  of  the  religious  and  moral  ideas  attained  by 
those  two  potent  forces,  mints  the  good  metal  of  Prophecy  and 
Law  into  current  coin’  (Cornill).  The  universalistic  spirit  of  the 
Book,  and  the  personification  of  AVisdom,  point  to  Greek  influence, 
perhaps.  There  is  a  certain  kinship  of  spirit  between  Proverbs 
and  Ecclesiasticus  which  makes  it  difficult  to  suppose  that  they 
are  separated  by  many  centuries.  ‘Even  the  royal  aphorisms  in 
Proverbs,  which  are  usually  adduced  as  the  surest  criterion  of 
pre-exilic  origin  [and  have  suggested  the  period  of  the  monarchy] 
have  their  counterpart  in  Jesus  ben  Sira  icf.  Ecclus.  vii.  4-6* 
viii.  1-3;  x.  1-5)’  (Cornill).  ^  ’ 

§  3.  Job. 

Commentaries  by  Delitzsch,  A.  B.  Davidson,  (Camb. 
Bible),  and  A.  S.  Peake  {Century  Bible);  also  Driver’s 
edition  of  Job  (R.V.)  with  short  notes  (Oxford,  1906);  cf. 
also  Cheyne,  Job  and  Solomon  (1887),  pp.  11-115;  article  Joh 
(by  A.  B.  Davidson)  in  Encycl.  Brit,  and  the  articles  in  the 
Bible  Dictionaries. 

(1)  The  general  Character  and  Aim  of  the  Book.— The 
Book  of  Job  belongs  to  the  Wisdom-Literature  of  which 
it  is  the  most  splendid  representative.  The  theme  of 
the  Book  is  the  problem  of  suffering — how  to  reconcile 
the  suffering  of  the  righteous  with  the  justice  of  a  bene¬ 
ficent  and  Almighty  God.  This  was  evidently  a  burning 
question  when  the  Book  was  written,  and  it  emerges  in 
other  parts  of  the  Old  Testament  {e.g.  in  Deiitero- 
Isaiah  and  the  Psalms).  What  may  be  described  as  the 

1  The  tradition  of  Solomonic  authorship  may  have  some  rela¬ 
tion  to  I.  Kings  iv.  32.  Cf.  the  Introductions  of  Driver  and 
Cornill  on  this  point. 


132 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LITERATURE 


traditional  and  earlier  Old  Testament  view  was  tliat 
‘  suffering  is  a  sign  of  the  Divine  displeasure,  and  pre¬ 
supposes  sin  on  the  part  of  the  sufferer  ’  (Driver).  This 
view  is  controverted  in  the  Book  of  Job. 

The  Book  recounts  how  Job  from  the  land  of  Uz— a  pattern  of 
piety  and  blameless  virtue— meets  with  a  series  of  unparalleled 
misfortunes.  These  are  supposed  to  indicate  some  special  sinful¬ 
ness  on  his  part  by  the  three  friends,  Eliphaz,  Bildad,  and 
Zophar,  who  arrive  on  the  scene  to  console  him.  The  friends 
demand  from  Job  confession  of  his  guilt  and  submission  to  God’s 
righteous  judgment.  This  confession  Job  feels  himself  unable  to 
offer  without  making  himself  a  hypocrite,  and  the  Book  is  mainly 
occupied  with  a  debate  between  Job  and  the  friends  in  which  the 
issues  involved  are  thoroughly  discussed.  An  Epilogue  completes 
the  account  of  Job’s  vindication. 

(2)  Contents  and  Analysis  of  the  Book. — The  Book  con¬ 
sists  of  five  partSj  viz.  {a)  ch.  i.-ii.,  {b)  cli.  iii.-xxxi.,  (c) 
ch.  xxxii.-xxxvii.,  {d)  xxxviii.  1-xlii.  6,  and  (e)xlii.  7-17. 

(a)  Ch.  i.-ii.,  the  Prologue,  written  in  prose.  This  furnishes 
the  necessary  information  respecting  the  personality  and  fortunes 
of  the  hero  of  the  poem.  ‘  Without  the  prologue  the  whole  of  the 
following  speeches  would  remain  suspended  in  the  air’  (Cornill). 

(&)  Ch.  iii.-XXXi.,  written  in  poetry,  set  forth  a  debate  between 
Job  and  his  three  friends  Eliphaz,  Bildad,  and  Zophar.  The 
section  opens  with  a  passionate  cry  from  Job  bewailing  his  birth, 
and  asking  why  life  should  be  prolonged,  when  it  can  only  mean 
misery  (ch.  iii.).  AYith  ch.  iv.  the  debate  proper  begins.  The 
first  cycle  of  speeches  (ch.  iv.-xiv.)  is  opened  by  Eliphaz  (ch.  iv.-v.) 
to  whom  Job  (vi.-vii.)  replies.  Bildad  (ch.  viii.)  now  takes  up 
the  discussion,  and  Job  (ix.-x.),  in  a  tone  of  bitter  irony,  replies. 
The  debate  is  continued  by  Zophar  (xi.)  to  whom  Job  replies 
(xii.-xiv.).  The  friends  all  fail  to  offer  Job  any  real  satisfaction. 
J'ti  the  second  cycle  of  speeches  (ch.  xv.-xxi.)  the  debate  is  again 
opened  by  Eliphaz  (xv.)  followed  by  Job  (xvi.-xvii.),  who  reproaches 
the  friends  for  their  empty  solace.  Bildad  follows  (xviii.)  and  is 
replied  to  by  Job  (xix.),  and  again  Zophar  (xx. )  joins  in  and 
Job  (xxi.). 

In  the  third  cycle  of  speeches  (ch.  xxii.-xxviii.)  the  friends  adopt 
a  different  line.  They  explicitly  charge  Job  with  great  sins 
(inhumanity,  avarice,  abuse  of  power)  which  they  infer  from  his 
calamities.  Eliphaz  again  opens  the  debate  (xxii.);  Job  (xxiii.- 
xxiv.)  declaims  against  the  justice  of  God’s  providence.  Bildad 
follows  (xxv.)  in  a  short  speech,  which  practically  concludes  the 
friends’  case.  Job  replies  to  all  three  in  ch.  xxvi.-xxviii.  fCh. 
xxvii.-xxviii.  are  difficult  to  fit  into  the  position  of  Job  Pro¬ 
bably  xxvii.  1-10  is  the  reply  to  xxv.  4-6,  just  as  xxvi.  is  to  xxv., 
2-3  ;  xxvii.  11-23  is  probably'  ‘  directed  to  the  friends  whom  Job 
confounds  with  their  own  words,  in  this  way  welding  a  piece  of 


THE  POETICAL  AND  DIDACTIC  BOOKS  133 


recantation  .  .  .  into  a  weapon  against  the  friends’  (Cornill). 
Budde  would  transpose  ver.  7  so  as  to  follow  vers.  8-10.]  In 
ch.  xxix.-xxxi.  Job  finally  surveys  the  whole  circumstances  of  the 
case,  protesting  (in  ch.  xxxi.)  his  innocence,  and  appealing  to 
God. 

(c)  Ch.  xxxii.-xxxvii. — The  Elihir-speeches,  likewise  poetical 
in  form  (except  the  introductory  verses,  xxxii.  1-6),  After  Job’s 
direct  appeal  to  God,  at  the  end  of  xxxi.,  it  might  have  been 
expected  that  God  Himself  would  answer  and  vindicate  His 
methods  of  action  and  providence.  Instead,  a  new  speaker 
appears  (who  is  never  mentioned  elsewhere  in  the  poem,  nor  in 
the  Prologue  or  Epilogue).  He  is  represented  as  a  bystander, 
younger  than  the  rest,  and  so  only  intervenes  at  the  end. 
Elihu’s  discourse  falls  into  five  parts ;  the  first  (xxxii.  6-23)  intro¬ 
duces  the  speaker  ;  in  tlie  second  (xxxiii.),  third  (xxxiv.),  and 
fourth  (xxxv.)  Elihu  criticises  Job’s  contentions;  in  the  fifth 
(xxxvi.-xxxvii.)  Elihu  offers  his  own  solution  of  the  problem. 
Here  he  warns  Job  against  being  blinded  by  isolated  cases  of 
apparent  injustice  to  the  love  and  providential  wisdom  of  God  as 
exemplified  in  the  regulated  course  of  the  world.  Above  all,  he 
gives  a  teleological  explanation  of  the  suffering  of  the  righteous. 
Suffering  is  an  instrument  of  education  in  God’s  hand.  Eight 
recognition  of  this  on  man’s  part  leads  to  infinite  blessing ; 
failure  to  recognise  it  to  grave  sin.  In  this  way  Elihu  provides  the 
one  and  only  solution  to  the  problem  that  is  given  in  the  Book. 

(d)  Ch.  xxxviii.  1-xlii.  6. — Here  Jahveh  appears  and  answers 
Job  out  of  the  whirlwind.  ‘He  does  not  dispute  :  He  displays  a 
series  of  living  pictures,  and  surrounds,  stuns,  and  overwhelms 
Job  with  His  animate  and  inanimate  creation’  (Herder). 

(e)  Ch,  xlii.  7-17. — The  Epilogue  (written  in  prose)  describes  the 
end  of  Job’s  trials  and  his  restoration  to  prosperity. 

(3)  Integrity  of  the  Book, — Questions  have  been  raised 
regarding  the  authenticity  of  certain  parts  of  the  Book  : 
in  particular  with  regard  to  the  Prologue  and  Epilogue, 
ch.  xxvii.  and  xxviii.,  the  Elihu-speeches,  and  xl.  15- 
xli.  2G. 

The  Prologue  and  Einlogue,  as  has  already  been  pointed  out, 
are  indispensable  for  the  elucidation  of  the  poem.  [The  story  of 
Job  here  sketched  was  probably  based  upon  tradition,  which  has 
been  freely  handled  for  didactic  purposes.  Job  is  alluded  to  as 
a  historical  personage  in  Ezek.  xiv.  14.]  For  ch.  xxvii. -xxviii. 
see  above.  The  objections  to  the  Elihu-speeches  are  grave,  but 
have  been  most  successfully  explained  by  several  modern  scholars, 
especially  by  Cornill.  i  Probably  Elihu  is  the  absolute  creation 
of  the  poet  (hence  his  non-mention  in  the  prologue  and  epilogue, 
which  follow  the  outlines  of  the  traditional  story).  Elihu’s 
discourse  offers  the  only  solution  of  the  problem,  and  is  theologi- 


1  Op.  cit.  pp.  425-431. 


134 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LITERATURE 


cally  most  profound.  The  section,  however,  is  not  a  finished  pro¬ 
duction,  and  was  probably  left  by  the  poet  in  an  incomplete  form 
(hence  obscurities  of  expression,  repetition,  etc.).  Dramatically 
it  is  entirely  appropriate  that  not  Jahveh  Himself,  but  a  young 
stranger  should  offer  the  solution.  When  Jahveh  does  intervene 
it  is  not  to  discuss  and  dispute  (which  would  have  been  an 
undignified  exhibition)  but  to  manifest  and  reveal.  [The  diffuse 
character  of  parts  of  xl.  1 5-xlii.  6  is  probably  due  to  the  imper¬ 
fect  state  in  which  this  part  of  the  poem  was  left.] 

(4)  Date  of  the  Book. — This  can  only  be  determined  by 
internal  evidence.  The  language^  which  is  tinged  with 
Aramaisms,  suggests  a  comparatively  late  date  ;  while  the 
contents  of  the  Book  show  that  the  problem  it  deals 
with  was  in  an  advanced  stage  of  discussion  (later  than 
Ezek.  xviii).  It  can  hardly  be  placed  earlier  than  the 
Exile^  and  is  probably  later  still  (according  to  some 
scholars  later  than  Prov.  i.-ix.;  cf.  Job  xv.  7,  which  is 
dependent  on  Prov.  viii.  25).  In  any  case  the  Book  is 
most  probably  post-exilic. 

§  4.  The  Five  Megilloth  (Canticles,  Ruth,  Lamenta¬ 
tions,  Ecclesiastes,  Esther). 

Literature.  —  Commentaries  on  Canticles,  by  Harper  (Camb. 
Bible),  and  P.  Haupt  (1902) ;  on  Ruth,  by  C.  H.  H.  Wright 
(1864);  on  Lamentations,  cf.  s.v.  in  Encycl.  Brit.',  on 
Ecclesiastes,  Commentaries  by  F.  Delitzsch,  C.  H.  H.  Wright 
(1883);  and  C.  A.  Barton  (in  I.C.C.,  1908);  on  Esther,  by 
P,  Cassel,^nd  L.  B.  Patou  {I.G.C.,  1908). 

1.  Canticles. 

(1)  The  general  Character  and.  Form  of  the  Book. — The 
Song  of  Songs  {i.e.  the  choicest  song)  is  a  poem  (or 
collection  of  poems)  the  theme  of  which  is  love.  Numer¬ 
ous  indications — such  as  change  of  number  and  (in  the 
Hebrew)  of  gender — show  that  in  different  parts  of  the 
poem  different  persons  are  speaking  or  are  addressed. 
From  these  phenomena  diverse  conclusions  have  been 
drawn.  Some  scholars  (including  Herder)  have  supposed 
that  the  Book  is  substantially  a  collection  of  independent 
love-songs.  Others  regard  the  poem — which  has  a  certain 
uniform  character — as  in  the  nature  of  a  drama. 

According  to  the  older  view  the  dialogue  is  sustained  by  Uoo 
main  characters,  viz.  King  Solomon  and  a  Shulamite  maiden 
(vi.  13),  of  whom  he  is  enamoured.  The  poem  describes  how  this 
beautiLil  maiden  is  taken  from  her  country  home,  and  made 
Solomon’s  bride  at  Jerusalem.  According  to  the  later  view  (as 


THE  POEITICAL  AND  DIDACTIC  BOOKS  135 


developed  by  Ewald)  there  are  three  principal  characters,  viz. 
Solomon,  the  Shulamite  maiden,  and  her  shepherd-lover,  to  whom 
she  remains  faithful,  in  spite  of  the  king’s  blandishments.  On 
this  interpretation  the  poem  depicts  the  victory  of  true  and 
plighted  love,  in  spite  of  all  worldly  blandishments  to  be  faithless. 

Budde,  however,  partly  reviving  the  old  view  of  Herder,  has 
furnished  another  interpretation.  The  Song  is  explained  by  the 
customs  of  the  East  which  have  survived  down  to  the  present 
day.  ‘Among  the  Syrian  peasantry  the  seven-day  marriage 
festival  is  called  “the  king’s  week,”  because  on  this  occasion 
the  young  pair  are  looked  upon  as  king  and  queen,  and,  sitting 
upon  an  improvised  throne,  are  treated  as  such.’  ^  There  is  a 
series  of  ceremonies  which  are  gone  through  to  the  accompani¬ 
ment  of  singing,  playing,  and  dancing.  Budde  has  shown  that 
parts  of  Canticles  agree  with  these  songs.  The  ‘  king  ’  is  the 
young  husband  (called  King  Solomon,  as  the  most  fortunate  of 
lords),  and  the  ‘  Shulamite  ’  is  the  young  wife.  The  love  referred 
to  is  conjugal  love  (after  marriage).  This  theory  neces.sitates  the 
view  that  the  songs  have  been  redacted,  and  makes  the  interest 
culminate  in  the  middle  and  not  at  the  end  of  the  poem. 

Date  of  the  Book. — The  composition  of  the  Book  can 
hardly  be  very  early.  The  style  is  generally  pure,  but 
Persian  and  Greek  loan-words  occur,  as  well  as  other 
marks  of  late  linguistic  usage.  The  date  may  be  some¬ 
where  in  the  third  or  second  century  n.c.  It  is  easy  to 
see  how  the  mention  of  Solomon’s  name  would  give  rise 
to  the  tradition  of  Solomonic  authorship. ^ 

2.  Ruth. 

The  story  of  Ruth  is  too  well  known  to  need  recapitu¬ 
lation  here. 

(1)  The  general  Character  and  Aim  of  the  Book. — As  it 
supplies  particulars  as  to  David’s  ancestry  which  are 
lacking  in  the  Books  of  Samuel,  one  object  of  the  Book 
may  have  been  to  remedy  this  deficiency.  The  real 
motive  of  the  Book,  however,  is  probably  of  another  kind. 
If  it  was  produced  at  the  time  when  Ezra  and  Nehemiah 
were  enforcing  the  strict  view  regarding  intermarriage 
with  foreign  wives  {cf.  Ezra  ix.-x.  and  Neh.  xiii.  23-29), 
then  Rath  may  be  regarded  as  a  protest  against  this  view, 
intended  to  enforce  the  lesson  that  bodily  descent  is  not 
everything,  and  that  union  with  a  truly  pious  Gentile 

1  Cornill,  op.  cit.  p.  4G0. 

2  It  is  a  notable  fact  that  the  Book  was  admitted  into  the 
Canon  on  the  interpretation  that  it  is  an  allegory  of  the  history 
of  Israel  from  the  Exodus  to  the  Messiah. 


136 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LITERAITJRE 


woman  may  be  blessed  by  Jabveh.  The  point  is  brought 
home  with  great  force  by  the  empliasis  laid  upon  David’s 
descent  from  a  Moabitess. 

(2)  Date  of  the  Book. — On  the  view  of  the  Book  given 
above,  its  composition  must  be  placed  in  the  post-exilic 
l)eriod.  This  is  confirmed  by  the  internal  evidence. 

An  antiquarian  air  marks  the  allusions  to  the  past  (Ruth  i.  1 ; 
cf.  also  iv.  7  Avith  Deut.  xxv.  9);  and  the  language  is  marked  by 
Aramaisms.  [Some  scholars,  however,  prefer  an  exilic  date.] 

3.  Lamentations. 

(1)  Title  of  the  Book. — One  of  the  Jewish  names  of  the 
Book  is  taken  from  its  opening  word ’c/o7,  (Heb. 
another  name  is  Khioth,  i.e.  Lamentntmis  {hXX. 

(2)  Contents  and  general  Character.— The  Book  is  made 
up  of  five  independent  poems.  The  one  theme  of  all  is 
lamentation  over  the  destruction  of  Jerusalem,  the  suffer- 
*ings  and  calamities  attendant  upon  which  are  depicted 
with  terrible  vividness. 

The  Book  ends  with  a  despairing  note  (v.  22).  But  when  it  is 
read  liturgically  in  the  synagogues  the  custom  has  been  to  avoid 
such  a  conclusion  by  repeating  the  penultimate  verse  (as  in  the 
case  of  Isaiah,  Malachi,  and  Koheleth). 

The  first  four  chapters  are  alphabetic  poems,  and  are 
written  in  the  Kina-verse  (explained  above,  p.  124  f.). 

The  text  is  in  places  corrupt :  the  verse-form,  which  is  fixed,  is 
a  valuable  aid  for  conjectural  restoration  where  necessary. 

Chap.  A\  occupies  an  isolated  position.  In  its  present 

(corrupt.^)  form  it  is  neither  alphabetic  in  arrangement 

nor  is  it  constructed  in  the  Kina-verse.^ 

/ 

The  themes  of  the  chapters  in  detail  are  :  the  desolation  and 
misery  of  Jerusalem  (ch.  i. );  Jahveh’s  anger  with  His  people 
(ch.  ii.);  the  nation’s  complaint,  and  its  ground  of  consolation 
(ch.  iii.) ;  Zion’s  past  and  present  contrasted  (ch.  iv.) ;  the  nation’s 
appeal  for  Jahveh’s  compassionate  regard  (ch.  v.). 

(3)  Date  and  Authorship  of  the  Poems.  —Traditionally 
the  authorship  of  Lamentations  is  ascribed  to  Jeremiah  ; 
and  this  tradition  is  as  old  as  the  LXX.  But  some  parts 
of  the  poems  are  difficult  to  conceive  as  written  by  the 
prophet  {e.g.  v.  7,  cf.  Jer.  xxi.  29-30;  and  Lam.  ii.  9), 

1  See,  however,  an  important  article  {Lamentations)  in  the  new 
(forthcoming)  edition  of  the  Encycl.  Brit. 


THE  POETICAL  AND  DIDACTIC  BOOKS  137 


It  is^  moreover,  not  improbable  that  the  poems  emanate 
from  more  than  one  author. 

Ch.  ii.  and  iv. — which  must  be  the  work  of  an  eye-witness- 
are  regarded  by  Cornill  as  the  oldest  parts,  and  were  probably 
written  soon  after  58G.  Ch.  v.  may  have  been  written  towards 
the  end  of  the  Exile;  while  ch.  i.  and  hi.,  which  display  many 
points  of  contact  with  Deutero-  and  Trito-Isaiah,  and  with  numer¬ 
ous  i>salms,  may  be  younger  (post-exilic). 

4.  Koheleth  (Ecclesiastes). 

(1)  Title,  general  Character,  and  Contents  of  the  Book. — 
The  Hebrew  title  of  the  Book  is  Koheleth,  which  is 
rendered  by  the  LXX.  ’EKKXr)(na(TTl]s  or  the  Preacher,  and 
Latinised  by  the  V^ulgate  into  Ecclemistes.  The  Hebrew 
word  Koheleth  occurs  in  the  body  of  the  Book  as  a  name 
given  to  Solomon  (i.  1,  2,  12  ;  vii.  27  5  xii.  8,  9,  10). 

The  real  meaning  of  the  term  is  disputed.  The  feminine  form 
of  the  word  probably  intensifies  the  meaning  (investing  the  word 
with  a  neuter  sense).  Hence  it  may  mean  in  this  connection  ‘  the 
great  orator’  (R.V.  margin). 

The  writer,  speaking  in  the  name  of  Solomon,  gives  a 
sort  of  survey  of  life,  mingled  with  his  own  personal 
reflections. 

He  begins  by  declaring  the  vanity  of  all  earthly  things  (i.  1-11), 
theyanity  of  wisdom  (i.  12-18),  of  pleasure  and  riches  (ii.  1-11  ff.). 
In  ch.  iii.  1-15  he  proves  that  God  avenges  all  things,  and  that 
man  is  helpless  before  Him  ;  men  are  like  the  beasts  that  perish 
(iii.  16-22) ;  he  depicts  the  misery  produced  by  oppression,  rivalry, 
and  toil  (iv.  1-6),  the  advantages  of  companionship  (iv.  7-12),  and 
the  hollowness  shown  in  political  life,  etc.  (iv.  17-v.  6).  In  v.  7- 
vi.  6  the  vanity  of  riches  is  the  principal  theme  ;  then  the  vanity 
of  desire  is  touched  upon  (vi.  7-l2).  In  the  remaining  chapters 
the  ways  of  the  Avise  (vii.  1-24)  are  described,  the  wicked  woman, 
the  advantages  of  wisdom  in  dark  days  and  trust  in  God  (viii.- 
ix.  2) ;  a  parable  on  the  utility  of  wisdom  is  given  in  ix.  13-18, 
which  is  followed  by  proverbs  on  the  value  of  wisdom,  and  the 
results  of  folly  (x.  1-15) ;  the  miseries  endured  by  a  land  under 
an  incompetent  king  are  also  described  (x.  16-20) ;  benevolence  is 
inculcated  (xi.  1-8),  and  in  xi.  9-xii.  7  follows  the  song  on  the  days 
of  life  and  of  death.  The  Epilogue  (xii.  8-14)  closes  the  Book. 

The  discussion  is  characterised  by  a  certain  inconse¬ 
quence  and  inconsistency,  which  reflect  the  conflicting 
moods  of  the  writer.  His  ^  was  a  nature  full  of  contra¬ 
dictory  elements  ;  in  his  body  IKed  two  souls — in  head 
a  Greek,  in  heart  a  Jew.’  In  spite  of  all  anomalies  and 
perplexing  experiences  Koheleth  never  loses  hold  of  his 


138 


OLD  TESTAMENT  LITERATURE 


belief  in  God  and  the  moral  constitution  of  the  world. 
As  Professor  Cornill  well  says :  ‘  Old  Testament  piety 
lias  nowhere  enjoyed  a  greater  triumph  than  in  the  Book 
of  Koheleth.’ 

Age  and  Authorship  of  the  Book.— The  Solomonic 
personification  is^  of  course^  a  mere  literary  device  on 
the  part  of  the  author  (adopted  quite  in  good  faith). 
Linguistically  the  Book  is  one  of  the  latest  products  of 
Old  Testament  literature.  It  probably  was  written  either 
during  the  last  century  of  Persian  rule  (a  period  of  decline 
and  anarchy)  or  during  the  period  of  the  later  Ptolemies 
and  Seleucids,  when  Greek  influence  (apparent  in  the 
Book)  was  powerful. 

5.  Esther. 

(1)  The  Contents  and  general  Character  of  the  Book. — The 
Book  of  Esther  is  in  form  a  historical  narrative  which 
recounts  how,  after  the  repudiation  of  Vashti,  listher, 
the  adoptive  daughter  of  a  Jewish  exile  named  Mordecai, 
became  the  consort  of  the  Persian  king  Ahashverosh, 
i.e.  Xerxes.  In  this  position  she  was  enabled  to  frustrate 
the  plot  of  Hainan,  the  arch-enemy  of  the  Jews,  and 
secured  for  the  latter  a  bloody  revenge  on  their 
opponents.  The  aim  of  the  Book  is  obvious ;  it  i&  to 
explain  the  origin  and  to  recommend  the  observance  of 
the  Feast  of  Purim.  Though  it  rests,  doubtless,  upon  a 
traditional  basis,  it  cannot  be  regarded  as  pure  history, 
but  rather  in  the  nature  of  a  historical  romance. 

The  Age  and  Origin  of  the  Book.— The  first  clear  histori¬ 
cal  allusion  to  the  Feast  of  Purim  occurs  in  II.  Maccabees 
(written  probably  about  the  beginning  of  the  Christian 
era),  where  (xv.  36)  the  Day  of  Nicanor  (Adar  13)  is 
described  as  the  day  before  the  day  of  Mordecai  ’  (tt/jo 
fiLus  7]fX€pas  Tr'js  Mapdo^aiKrjs  ^pipas).  That  the  Feast  of 
Purim  is  intended  by  Hhe  day  of  Mordecai’  is  obvious. 

‘By  the  majority  of  critics  the  Book  is  assigned  either 
to  the  early  years  of  the  Greek  period,  or  to  the  third 
century  b.c.’  (Driver).  The  character  of  the  diction 
points  to  a  late  date. 

Kuenen  (with  whom  Cornill  agrees)  thinks  the  spirit  of  the 
Book  most  easily  explained  as  an  echo  of  the  religious  war  against 
Antiochus  Epiphanes,  but  would  assign  it,  not  to  the  beginning 
of  tfie  Maccabean  period,  but  somewhat  later  (c.  135  b.c.). 


D.  APOCALYPTIC  LITERATURE 


CHAPTER  V.— THE  BOOK  OF  DANIEL 

Literature. — Commentaries  by  Pusey  (3rd  ed,  1869),  A.  A.  Bevan 
(1892),  J.  D.  Prince  (1899),  S.  R.  Driver,  1900  (Oamb.  Bible). 

[With  what  follows  cf.  Ottley,  H.P.,  pp.  103-105 
and  pp.  91  ff.] 

(1)  General  Character  of  the  Book. — The  Book  of  Daniel 
is  the  earliest  literary  example  of  a  complete  Apocalyptic 
Book.  All  extensive  literature  of  this  type  exists  outside 
the  Old  Testament  Canon  (the  Ethiopic  Book  of  Enoch 
is  the  most  important  example) ;  and  to  it  must  also  be 
reckoned  ii.  (iv.)  Esdras  (in  the  Apocrypha)  and  the 
Apocalypse  of  S.  John  (in  the  New  Testament). 

This  type  of  religious  thought  (the  apocalyptic)  only  emerged 
into  a  prominent  jilace  after  the  cessation  of  prophecy.  In  its 
literary  form  it  presupposes  the  prophetic  literature.  But  it 
embodies  ancient  elements  as  well,  which  it  has  made  peculiarly 
its  own,  especially,  it  would  seem,  a  traditional  eschatology,  which 
goes  back  to  a  long  antiquity.  This  element  can  be  seen  already 
emerging  into  literary  expression  in  some  of  the  prophetic  books 
(and  earlier  than  Daniel). 

\_Gf.  especially  Isa,  xxiv.-xxvii. ;  Ixv.-lxvi, ;  parts  of  Ezekiel, 
Joel,  Zechariah.] 

The  main  interest  of  apocalyptic  is  concentrated  not  on  the 
present  but  on  the  great  consummation  of  the  future,  the  final 
drama  which  is  to  bring  history  to  its  predestined  end.  It  is 
essentially  ‘other  worldly,’  and  employs  largely  symbolic  and 
figurative  language,  the  vision  and  the  dream.  The  ‘  revelations  ’ 
given  in  apocalyptic  writings  are  often  attached  to  the  name  of 
some  great  heroic  figure  of  old  (probably  on  the  basis  of  popular 
tradition).  Lastly,  the  apocalyptists  constructed  a  philosophy  of 
history  of  their  own  (dividing  it  into  fixed  periods — e.g.  a  world- 
week)  with  a  view  to  the  linal  eschatological  drama ;  and  also 
evolved  a  i)eculiar  technical  phraseology. 

(2)  Contents  and  Analysis  of  the  Book. — The  Book  of 

W 


140 


OLD  TESTAI\IENr  LITERATURE 

Daniel  falls  into  two  main  divisions  :  (a)  ch.  i.-vi.,  which 
narrate  episodes  in  the  history  of  Daniel^  and  (b)  ch.  vii.- 
xii.,  which  contain  the  visions  attributed  to  him.  The 
Book  is  written  partly  in  Hebrew,  partly  in  a  form  of 
Palestinian  Aramaic  (the  Aramaic  part  extending  from 
ii.  4b  to  the  end  of  vii.). 

(а)  Ch.  i.-vi.  Ch.  i.  is  introductory,  and  describes  how  Daniel, 
and  three  other  noble  Israelitish  youths  (Hananiah,  Mishael,  and 
Azariah),  who  were  among  the  captives  taken  by  Nebuchadnezzar 
in  the  reign  of  Jehoiakim,  were  instructed  by  command  of  the 
Babylonian  monarch,  for  three  years,  in  the  language  and  learn¬ 
ing  of  the  Chaldeans.  Daniel  is  found  specially  distinguished, 
and  in  a  remarkable  degree  in  ‘  understanding  in  all  visions  and 
dreams.  Ch.  ii.  describes  how  Daniel,  when  all  others  have 
failed,  successfully  interprets  a  dream  which  troubled  Nebuchad¬ 
nezzar,  and  is  raised  to  honour  in  consequence.  Ch.  iii.  describes 
how  Daniel’s  three  companions,  refusing  to  worship  the  golden 
image,  are  cast  into  a  fiery  furnace,  are  wonderfully  delivered, 
and  honoured  by  the  king,  who  solemnly  acknowledges  the  power 
of  their  God.  Ch.  iv.  explains  the  occasion  of  a  royal  edict  ex¬ 
tolling  the  greatness  of  Israel’s  God  (vers.  1-3,  34-37),  viz.  a 
dream  (of  the  mighty  tree  which  was  to  be  cut  down).  This 
dream  is  interpreted  by  Daniel,  when  the  Chaldeans  have  failed. 
The  verification  of  the  dream  is  described  (vers.  4-33).  Ch.  v. 
describes  Belshazzar’s  feast,  and  Daniel’s  interpretation  of  the 
writing  on  the  wall.  In  ch.  vi.  it  is  related  that  ‘Darius  the 
Mede’  (who  had  slain  Belshazzar)  promoted  Daniel  to  honour: 
but  later  Daniel  is  cast  into  a  den  of  lions  (for  refusing  to  obey 
an  idolatrous  decree),  but  is  wonderfully  delivered. 

(б)  Ch.  vii.-xii. — The  second  or  ‘apocalyptic’  part  of  the  Book 
describes  Daniel’s  visions.  The  first  of  these  (ch.  vii,)— that  of 
the  ‘four  beasts’ — explains  the  latter  to  signify  four  kingdoms. 
After  the  fourth  has  been  destroyed  ‘  the  people  of  the  saints  of  the 
Most  High’  are  to  receive  the  dominion  of  the  whole  earth.  The 
‘  horn ’-vision  (ch.  viii.)  is  explained  to  refer  to  the  rise  and  fall 
of  the  empires  of  the  Medes  and  Persians,  of  Alexander  (‘the 
notable  horn’),  and  the  four  kingdoms  that  arose  from  the  latter 
(the  kingdoms  of  the  Diadochi  —  of  Seleucus  at  Antioch,  the 
Ptolemies  in  Egypt,  Lysimachus  in  Thrace,  Cassander  in  Mace¬ 
donia).  The  ‘little  horn,’  doubtless,  represents  Antiochus 
Epiphanes.  Ch.  ix.  opens  with  a  prayer  of  Daniel  imploring 
God  to  look  favoiirably  on  the  ruined  sanctuary,  and  forgive  the 
people’s  iniquity  (vers.  1-19).  The  angel  Gabriel  explains  that  the 
seventy  years  of  desolation  prophesied  by  Jeremiah  mean  seventy 
weeks  of  years.  This  is  then  subdivided  into  three  periods,  and 
applied  to  the  history  culminating  in  the  oppressive  measures  of 
Antiochus  Epiphanes. 

The  fourth  and  last  vision  is  described  in  ch.  x.-xii.  An  angel 
appears  to  Daniel  to  give  him  a  revelation  concerning  the  future 


141 


THE  BOOK  OF  DANIEL 

(x.  1-19).  This  angel  and  Michael  will  have  a  long  contest  on 
behalf  of  Israel  first  with  the  ‘  prince  ’  (guardian-angel)  of  Persia, 
then  with  the  ‘prince’  (guardian-angel)  of  Greece  (x.  20-xi.  1). 
The  contest  is  described  in  xi.  2-xii.  3.  Here  in  veiled  language 
are  narrated  briefly  the  doings  of  four  Persian  kings  (xi.  2)  and 
of  Alexander  the  Great  (ver.  3),  with  the  break-up  of  his  empire 
at  his  death  (ver.  4) ;  vers.  5-20  contain  a  survey  of  the  history 
of  the  Ptolemies  and  Seleucids,  and  their  relations  with  each 
other,  and  vers.  21-39  give  a  detailed  description  of  the  reign  of 
Antiochus  Epiphanes  and  of  his  persecution  of  Israel’s  religion. 
‘The  death  of  Antiochus  is  fcdlowed  by  the  resurrection  (of 
Israelites),  and  advent  of  the  Messianic  age  (xii.  1-3).  The 
revelation  is  designed  for  those  living  “in  the  time  of  the  end,” 
i.e.  under  the  persecution  of  Antiochus  (xii.  4-13),  the  close  of 
which  (ver.  Ilf.)  appears  to  be  placed  1290  (or  1335)  days  after 
the  suspension  of  the  dail}'^  sacrifice  in  168  b.c.  (with  xii..  Hot, 
cf.  xi.  31 ;  viii.  11,  13).’ i 

(3)  The  Aim  of  the  Book  and  Date  of  its  Composition.  — A 
number  of  indications  converge  to  show  that  the  Book 
cannot  have  been  written  earlier  than  c.  800  b.c.,  and  in 
Palestine.  It  is  practically  certain  that  it  was  composed 
between  the  years  168  aiid  165  b.c.,  to  encourage  the 
faithful  who  were  suffering  in  the  persecution  inaugurated 
by  Antiochus  Epiphanes. 

‘The  writer’s  purpose  is  to  strengthen  the  religious  section  of 
the  nation  under  this  supreme  test  of  their  faith  and  loyalty. 
He  is  carried  back  in  the  spirit  to  the  days  of  the  Exile,  and 
identifies  himself  with  Daniel,  a  Jewish  captive  at  Babylon,  who 
is  represented  as  foreseeing  in  a  series  of  great  visions  the  course 
of  events  that  culminated  in  the  troubles  of  the  Maccabean  age. 
From  the  standpoint  of  the  writer  all  events  later  than  the  age 
of  Daniel  are  ex  hypothesi  future  ;  but  the  Book  is  not  without 
actual  predictions  :  the  author,  who  writes  while  the  persecution 
is  still  going  on,  foresees  the  issues  with  a  confidence  which  comes 
from  the  sense  of  a  Divine  gift.’  - 

[The  position  of  the  Book  in  the  Jewish  Canon,  where  it  usually 
occupies  the  ninth  place  among  the  Hagvjrapha,  not  being 
reckoned  among  the  prophets,  is  significant. 

That  Daniel  was  a  historical  personage,  and  that  the  story  of 
Daniel  has  a  traditional  basis,  may  be  inferred  from  the  reference 
in  Ezekiel  (xiv.  14-20),  where  Daniel  is  bracketed  with  Noah  and 
Job;  in  Ezek.  xxviii.  3  Daniel  is  mentioned  as  a  prodigy  of 
wisdom.  There  is  an  interesting  reference  to  Daniel  and  the 
three  friends  in  I.  Macc.  ii.  .59,  60.] 


1  Driver,  op.  cit.  p.  466  f. 

2  Prof.  H.  B.  Swete,  Apocalyine  of  St  John,  p.  xx. 


INDEX 


Accentuation.  17. 

Alterations,  deliberate,  in  the 
original  text,  18. 

Apocalyptic  literature,  general 
character  of,  8  f.,  139. 

Aquila,  translation  of  the  Bible, 
21. 

Archetype  of  Masoretic  text,  16  f. 

Balaam-oracles,  48,  76. 

Baruch  (friend  of  Jeremiah),  102. 

‘  Bow,  Song  of  the,’  75. 

Canon iciTY,  criterion  of,  5  ff. 

Chronicles  of  the  kings  (of  Israel, 
Judah)  cited  in  Kings,  77 ;  re¬ 
lation  of,  to  the  official  court 
annals,  77  f. 

Chronology  of  Judges,  68 ;  of 
Kings,  77. 

Conjecture,  justifiable  use  of,  25  f. 

Covenant,  Book  of  the,  55  f. 

Daniel,  Book  of,  place  of,  in 
Canon,  12,  141. 

David  and  the  Psalter,  127. 

Deborah,  Song  of,  67. 

Decalogues,  the  two,  55. 

'Defile  the  hands ’=canonical,  6. 

Double  narratives,  37  f. 

142 


E=Elohistic  stratum  in  Hexa- 
teuch,  38 ;  characteristics  of, 
60 ;  origin  and  date  of,  61 ; 
later  revision  of,  61. 

Ecclesiasticus.  See  Sira  (Ben). 

Elihu-speeches,  the  (in  Job),  133. 

Exile,  the  Babylonian,  literary 
activity  in,  ii  f.,  29. 

Ezekiel,  relation  of,  to  Holiness 
Code  and  P,  107 ;  disputed 
status  of,  7. 

Ezra  promulgates  P  (444  b.c.), 
35.  63. 

H  =  Law  of  Holiness  (=Lev. 
xvii.-xxvi.),  35  f.,  44  ffi 

Hannah,  Song  of  (I.  Sam.  ii.  i- 
10),  72. 

‘Hiding’  a  book,  significance  of 
the  expression,  7. 

Holiness,  Law  of.  See  H. 

Inspiration-period,  theory  of 
an,  7  f. 

Isaiah,  position  of,  in  the  Hebrew 
Cation,  3. 

J=Jahvistic  stratum  in  the 
Pentateuch,  39 ;  characteristics 


INDEX 


143 


of,  6o ;  origin  and  date  of,  6i ; 
later  revision  of,  6i. 

Jacob,  Blessing  of,  53. 

Jamnia,  Synod  of,  7. 

Jashar,  Book  of,  75,  80. 

Josephus  on  the  Canon,  5  f. 

'  Kina ’-VERSE,  124  f. 

Koheleth  (Ecclesiastes),  canoni- 
city  of,  disputed,  7. 

Lucianic  Recension  (of  LXX.), 
21,  25. 

Manuscripts,  Hebrew,  of  no 
great  age,  15  f. ;  reflect  a  single 
type  of  text,  16. 

Masora  (Masoretic)  explained, 
4.  15  ff- 

M6gilla=  ‘  roll,’  15. 

Megilloth,  the  five,  15. 

Midrash,  explanation  of  the  term, 
88  ;  a  midrashic  work  cited  by 
the  Chronicler,  88  f. 

Moses  and  the  Pentateuch,  30  ff. 

Moses,  Blessing  of  (  =  Deut. 
xxxiii.),  54  f- 

- Song  of  (  =  Deut.  xxxii,),  54. 

Number  of  Canonical  Books, 
variously  estimated,  9  f. 

P=the  priestly  element  in  the 
Hexateuch,  38 ;  characteristics 
of,  61  f. ;  origin  and  date  of, 
62  f.  ;  later  revision  of,  63. 

Pentateuch,  critical  analysis  of, 

33  f- 

Prophetic  writings  (including 
Judges,  Samuel,  Kings),  collec¬ 
tion  of  the,  2  f.,  II  f. 


RD  (=:Deuteronomic  Redaction) 
in  Joshua,  57;  in  Kings  (R^*, 
RD2),  78f.,83. 

Roll  of  Jeremiah,  the,  102. 

Royal  annals  (state  archives), 
kept  from  the  earliest  period  of 
the  monarchy,  77  f. 

Septuagint,  the,  20  f. 

Servant  of  Jahveh,  Songs  of  the, 
100. 

Sira  (Ben),  Book  of,  referred  to, 
4.  9.  13- 

Solomon,  utterance  of,  at  the 
dedication  of  the  Temple  (pre¬ 
served  in  the  Book  of  Jashar), 
80. 

Superscriptions  of  the  Psalms, 
125  f. 

Targums,  the,  22  f. 

‘  Temple-history,’  a  supposed 
(utilised  in  the  compilation  of 
Kings),  83. 

Tikktmi  s6ferim,  18, 

Trito-Isaiah,  the,  100, 

Vocalisation,  the  traditional 
older  than  the  system  of  vowel- 
signs,  16  f. 

‘  Wars  of  Jahveh,  Book  of  the, 
54- 

'  Wisdom,’  Hebrew  conception  of, 
129. 

Wisdom-Literature  of  the  Old 
Testament,  the,  129,  131. 


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